Operation: Berlin, Germany

Date: 31st August/1st September 1943 (Saturday/Sunday)

Unit No: 75 (New Zealand) Squadron, 3 Group, Bomber Command

Type: Stirling III

Serial: EE878

Code: AA:P

Base: RAF Mepal, Cambridgeshire

Location: Ahrbrück, Germany

Pilot: Plt Off. Douglas Charles Henley MiD 414622 RNZAF Age 23. KiA (1)

Flt Eng: Sgt. Lewis Patrick Parsons 1455528 RAFVR Age? PoW No: 222626 *

Nav: Fg Off. Clifford Arnold Watson 421946 RNZAF Age 33. KiA

Bomb Aimer: Flt Sgt. Ian Hector Ross Smith 421614 RNZAF Age 34. KiA

WOp/Air Gnr: Sgt. Robert Norman Quelch 1319114 RAFVR Age 21. PoW No: 222631 ** (2)

Air Gnr (Mid Upp): Sgt. Douglas Charles Box 1578987 RAFVR Age 20. PoW No: 222573 ** (3)

Air Gnr (Rear): Sgt. James Sutherland Grant 421274 RNZAF Age 22. PoW No: 43260 *** (4)

* Stalag Luft 3, Sagan-Silesia, Germany, now Żagań in Poland

** Stalag 4B, Mühlberg, Sachsen, Germany

*** Stalag 357, Kopernikus at Thorn (Toruń) in Poland

Page of remembrance sponsored by Ian Box - January 2019

REASON FOR LOSS:

Taking off from RAF Mepal in Cambridgeshire at 20:31 hrs to bomb the big city, Berlin. Plt Off. Henley together with 17 others from the Squadron were detailed to attack the Berlin.

EE878 was hit by Flak and with the port inner engine out of action and the port tailplane damaged they lost considerable height, they were then attacked by a night fighter (as yet unidentified). The New Zealand pilot nursed the Stirling for nearly 500 km before informing the crew to abandon the aircraft as they were nearly out of fuel.

Very shortly afterwards the aircraft crashed at Ahrbrück in Germany. Although Sgt. Parsons and Sgt. Quelch baled out at a very low altitude they survived but taken prioners. Sgt. Box and Sgt. Grant, who had been injured during the attack had amazingly survived despite remaining in the aircraft when he discovered his parachute was destroyed by fire, were also both soon captured. Fg Off. Watson together with Flt Sgt. Smith were killed when their parachutes failed to deploy fully.

(1) Plt Off. Henley was Mentioned in Despatches (MiD) in June 1946 for his actions during this mission.

His older brother, Fg Off. William John Henry Henley DFC, 416846 RNZAF was killed on the 30th August 1945. Whilst serving with 164 Sqn he was passenger aboard 24 Sqn Dakota IV KJ974 flying from RAF Malta to the UK.

(2) Sgt. Quelch was captured at Ahrbrück that night and transferred to Dulag Luft, Oberursel. After the statutory solitary confinement and interrogation he was transferred to Stalag 4B Mühlberg at Sachsen arriving there on the 6th September 1943.

Whilst at the camp he and a Sgt. R. Benham prepared for an escape attempt but were thwarted due internal changes in the camp.

Flt Sgt. Richard Percy Benham 1339336 RAFVR PoW No: 222572 was the Wireless Operator/Air Gunner from 622 Sqn Stirling III EF119 which was shot down by a German night-fighter on the night of the 31st August/1st September 1943 on an operation to Berlin. (3 KiA, 4 PoW).

The camp was liberated by the Soviet Army on the 23rd April 1945. The camp held some 30,000 and of these 7,250 were British. The Soviet’s held the British and American prisoners in the camp for over a month. The then Flt Sgt. Quelch was interviewed on the 14th May 1945.

Robert Norman Quelch was born on the 1st September 1922 in London. He was employed a clerk prior in London to enlisting in the RAFVR on the 22nd February 1941. Robert passed away on the 1st January 2019 in Harlow, Essex, England.

(3) Sgt. Box was captured at Ahrbrück the next morning and transferred to Dulag Luft, Oberursel arriving there on the 2nd September. After the statutory solitary confinement and interrogation he was transferred to Stalag 4B Mühlberg at Sachsen arriving there on the 9th September 1943.

The camp was liberated by the Soviet Army on the 23rd April 1945. The camp held some 30,000 and of these 7,250 were British. The Soviet’s held the British and American prisoners in the camp for over a month. The then Flt Sgt. Box was interviewed on the 18th May 1945.

Douglas Charles Box was born on the 19th October 1922 in Hereford, Herefordshire. He was an Apprentice Mechanic in Worcester prior to enlisting in the RAFVR on the 24th September 1941. Douglas passed away on the 30th April 1990 in Penn, Wolverhampton, England.

(4) Sgt. Grant was wounded when he was captured and transferred to Dulag Luft, Oberusal when he was afforded no Medical treatment for his injuries. He was subjected to the statutory solitary confinement, interrogation and starvation diet.

He was then transferred to the Obermassfeld Hospital #1249 also known as Reserve-Lazarett 9C(a) which served Stalag 9C in Obermassfeld, Thuringia arriving there on the 9th September 1943.

After extended treatment he was transferred to Stalag Luft 6, Heydekrug, Memelland on the 19th March 1944 arriving there on the 21st March.

On the 20th June 1944 he was transferred to Stalag 357, Kopernikus at Thorn (Toruń) in Poland arriving there the next day. On the 1st September 1944 the PoWs were force-marched from Thorn (Toruń) in Poland to the site of the former Stalag 11D, with construction being carried out by the Italian PoW from Stalag 11B. The camp was commonly known as Stalag 357, Fallingbostal but officially the designation was Stalag 357, Oerbke.

In early April 1945 the PoWs were informed by the Commandant Oberst Hermann Ostmann that 12,000 British PoWs were being evacuated from the camp in the face of the Allied advance. On the 8th April the men marched from the camp in columns of 2,000.

After ten (10) days they arrived at Gresse, east of the Elbe. There they were issued with Red Cross parcels, but were then unfortunately strafed by British Typhoonfighter-bombers, mistaking them for German troops. Sixty (60) PoWs were killed and many wounded.

WO. ‘Dixie’ Deans confronted OberstOstmann and bluntly gave him a choice, to be captured to the Russians or the British. Ostman provided WO. Deans with a pass and a German guard, and they headed west to contact the advancing British troops. On the 1st May WO. Deans and his guard were sheltering in a house east of Lauenbergwhen they heard over the radio the news of the death of Adolf Hitler. The next morning the house was overrun by troops of the British 6th Airborne. WO. Deans was taken to the commander of VIII Corpsand explained the situation. He was given a captured Mercedes car and drove back to Gresse. Two days later the PoW column marched back across the British lines.

The then Warrant officer (WO) Grant was interviewed on the 6th May 1945.

James Sutherland Grant was born on the 7th November 1920 in Balclutha, Otago, New Zealand. He was a farmer in Otago prior to enlisting in the RNZAF in June 1940. James passed away on the 8th October 1993 in Clyde, Otago, New Zealand

Burial details:

The three who perished were initially buried in the municipal cemetery at Mayschoß on the 4th September and later laid to rest at the Rheinberg War Cemetery. None of the RNZAF graves have a personalised message from relatives Reasons explained here.

Plt Off. Douglas Charles Henley. Rheinberg War Cemetery. Grave 10.E.24. Born on the 19th October 1919 at Helensville, Auckland, New Zealand. Son of William James and Mabel Alice Henley of Mount Eden, Auckland, New Zealand.

Fg Off. Clifford Arnold Watson. Rheinberg War Cemetery. Grave 10.E.25. Born on the 18th July 1909 in Invercargill, Southland, New Zealand. Son of William James and Janet (née Mail) Watson of Invercargill, Southland, New Zealand. Husband of Ivy Mavis (née Ellis) Watson of Nelson, New Zealand.

Flt Sgt. Ian Hector Ross Smith. Rheinberg War Cemetery. Grave 10.E.24. Born on the 3rd March 1909 in New Zealand. Son of Hector John and Gertrude Mary Constance (née Nelson) Smith of Napier, Hawke's Bay, New Zealand.

Researched and dedicated to the relatives of this crew with thanks to Ian Box, son of Sgt. Douglas C. Box who contacted us in January 2019, also to Fred Munckhof for grave photographs (used with permission). Finally to the research by Errol Martyn and his publications: “For Your Tomorrow Vols. 1-3”,Auckland War Memorial Museum, Weekly News of New Zealand. Reviewed and updated by Aircrew Remembered (Sep 2025)

Other sources listed below:

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