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Operation: St-Valéry, France
Date: 6th June 1940 (Thursday)
Unit: 40 Squadron
Type: Blenheim Mk. IV
Serial: P4927
Code: BL:D
Base: RAF Wyton
Location: Le Touquet France
Pilot: Sgt. Joseph Archibald Donald Rice 741422 RAF PoW No: 349 Stalag Luft Heydekrug (L6)
Obs: Sgt. Reginald Charles Moffatt 580973 RAF PoW No: 20260 Camp: Stalag Kopernikus (357)
Air/Gnr: Sgt. Douglas Edward Peters 552082 RAF PoW No: 20261 Camp: Stalag Kopernikus (357)
REASON FOR LOSS:
After taking off from RAF Wyton at 08:15 hrs Shot down by Bf109s during an attack on troops advancing between St-Valéry and Abbeville and belly-landed on the beach of Le Touquet France at 10:00 hrs. Possibly that claimed by Uffz Hofelich of 3./JG3.
The reported crash location is the beach at Le Touquet-Paris-Plage, commonly referred to as Le Touquet, is a commune near Étaples, in the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France, at approximate Coordinates: 50°31′07″N 1°35′42″E.
Blenheim IV L8827 Flown by Sqn.Ldr. B. Pardon IGSM - Taken PoW with all crew.
Blenheim IV L9410 Flown by 24 year old, Plt.Off. Blake Bamford James 77464 RAFVR from Bognor Regis, Sussex - Missing with all crew.
Blenheim IV P4917 Flown by Plt.Off. Wakeford - injured with all crew after forced landing in allied held territory.
Blenheim IV R3692 Flown by 26 year old, Plt.Off. Vaughan Göthrik Welsby Engstrom 41687 RAF from Matlock Derbyshire - injured, all crew taken PoW. Understood that the pilot was repatriated to England. Sadly the then as a Flt.Lt. Vaughan Engstrom was killed on the 16th February 1943 whilst undertaking a flying instructors position with No. 7 Elementary Flying School at RAF Desford. Flying a Tiger Moth II DE461 stalled during a steep climbing turn at low level - killed with his RCAF Sgt. pupil (name not known) when the aircraft crashed near Sutton Cheney. Born on the 9th August 1913 from Rangitumau, New Zealand.
Burial details:
None all the crew survived.
Other 40 squadron losses this day:
Blenheim IV R3692 - Flt.Lt. Vaughan Göthrik Welsby Engstrom. Ibstock Cemetery. Row W.3. Grave 1. Son of Carl Göthrik Engstrom and Ellen Mabel Engstrom (née Welsby), husband of Hilda Engstrom (née Bennett), of Matlock, Derbyshire, England.
Blenheim IV L9410 - Plt.Off. Blake Bamford James. Runnymede Memorial. Panel 8. Son of Ivor Lough James, and of Constance G. James, of Bognor Regis, Sussex, England.
Blenheim IV L9410 - Sgt. John Edward Garcka. Runnymede Memorial. Panel 14. No further details - are you able to assist?
Blenheim IV L9410) -Sgt. Willie Furby. Runnymede Memorial. Panel 14. Son of George and Amy Furby, of Masham, Yorkshire, England.
Researched by Michel Beckers for Aircrew Remembered (Sep 2015). Photos from the Michel Beckers collection. Narrative update by Aircrew Remembered (Feb 2021)
RS 03.02.2021 - Updated information and narrative
RS 03.02.2021 - Updated information and narrative
History Airborne Forces • Soviet Night Witches • Bomber Command Memories • Abbreviations • Gardening Codenames
CWGC: Your Relative's Grave Explained • USA Flygirls • Axis Awards Descriptions • 'Lack Of Moral Fibre'
Concept of Colonial Discrimination • Unauthorised First Long Range Mustang Attack
RAAF Bomb Aimer Evades with Maquis • SOE Heroine Nancy Wake • Fane: Motor Racing PRU Legend
Sources used by us in compiling Archive Reports include: Bill Chorley - 'Bomber Command Losses Vols. 1-9, plus ongoing revisions', Dr. Theo E.W. Boiten and Mr. Roderick J. Mackenzie - 'Nightfighter War Diaries Vols. 1 and 2', Martin Middlebrook and Chris Everitt - 'Bomber Command War Diaries', Commonwealth War Graves Commission, Tom Kracker - Kracker Luftwaffe Archives, Michel Beckers, Major Fred Paradie (RCAF) and MWO François Dutil (RCAF) - Paradie Archive (on this site), Jean Schadskaje, Major Jack O'Connor USAF (Retd.), Robert Gretzyngier, Wojtek Matusiak, Waldemar Wójcik and Józef Zieliński - 'Ku Czci Połeglyçh Lotnikow 1939-1945', Archiwum - Polish Air Force Archive (on this site), Anna Krzystek, Tadeusz Krzystek - 'Polskie Siły Powietrzne w Wielkiej Brytanii', Franek Grabowski, Norman L.R. Franks 'Fighter Command Losses', Stan D. Bishop, John A. Hey MBE, Gerrie Franken and Maco Cillessen - Losses of the US 8th and 9th Air Forces, Vols 1-6, Dr. Theo E.W. Boiton - Nachtjagd Combat Archives, Vols 1-13. Aircrew Remembered Databases and our own archives. We are grateful for the support and encouragement of CWGC, UK Imperial War Museum, Australian War Memorial, Australian National Archives, New Zealand National Archives, UK National Archives and Fold3 and countless dedicated friends and researchers across the world.
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