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Operation: SOE sortie, Norway
Date: 30th/31st December 1944 (Saturday/Sunday)
Unit No: 620 Squadron, 38 Group
Type: Stirling IV
Serial: LJ914
Code: QS:R
Base: RAF Great Dunmow, Essex
Location: North Sea, near mouth of the Skaggerak
Pilot: Fg Off. Frederick George Waring 151138 RAFVR Age 30. MiA
Flt Eng: Flt Sgt. Denis Carnaby Foster 1490330 RAFVR Age? MiA
Navigator: WO. Thomas Anthony ‘Tommy’ Leyden 1498125 Age 27. MiA
Bomb Aimer: Flt Sgt. Graham Leslie Osmond-Jones 1394086 RAFVR Age 25. MiA
WOp/Air Gnr: Sgt. Kenneth Callaby 1549738 RAFVR Age 22. MiA
Air Gnr (Rear): Flt Sgt. Norman Arthur White 1220120 RAFVR Age 35. MiA
REASON FOR LOSS:
On the night of 30th/31st December 1944 Stirling IV LJ914 was one of four (4) aircraft from 620 Sqn that were detailed on SOE operations to Norway.
There were also aircraft from 138 and 190 Squadrons that were detailed this night on an SOE operation to Drop Zones (DZ) 'Bit' ‘Crupper' and Snaffle'.
'Bit’, ‘Crupper' and ‘Snaffle’ were the code names for Drop Zones (DZ) for a series of British Special Operations Executive (SOE) operations along the coastal regions of German occupied Denmark and Norway during 1944-45.
LJ914 failed to reach its DZ ‘Crupper 30’ in Norway. There were no claims by the Nachtjagerstaffel Norwegen this night, however, there were reports from other Stirling pilots that indicate that Flak may have been the reason for the loss.
LJ914 was one of two 2 Stirlings that failed to return:
The second was 138 Sqn Stirling IV LK283 NF:J on a ‘Crupper 10’ operation flown by Flt Lt. Raymond McGregor 412709 RNZAF, which was lost without trace with its (seven) 7 crew. It was reported that the aircraft was hit by Flak off Arendal in Norway.
Fg Off. Cyril Laurence ‘Larry’ Siegert DFC, of 190 Sqn, flying Stirling IV LJ281 who flew to Norway on a ‘Snaffle 3’ operation recorded that he observed Flak bursts at approximately Lat/Long 57 20N, 08 30E which was followed by a ball of fire spinning around and going down into the sea. He was of the opinion that this was possibly an aircraft hit.
Lat/Long 57 20N, 08 30E is about 95 km (59 mls) SSE of Kristiansand in Norway and 23 km (14¼ mls) NNW of Hanstholm in Denmark, in the entrance of the Skagerrak.
It is probable that the two Stirlings were shot down by Kriegsmarine Flak ships which continually change position off the Norwegian and Danish coasts to make such operations as difficult as possible.
Burial details:
Above: The Runnymede Memorial (Courtesy of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC))
Fg Off. Frederick George Waring. Runnymede Memorial Panel 209. Born in 2nd Qtr of 1914 in West Ham, Essex. Son of Frederick George and Clara (née Horn) Waring. Husband to Ruby Jennie Beatrice (née Pickard) Waring of Saffron Walden, Essex, England.
Flt Sgt. Denis Carnaby Foster. Runnymede Memorial Panel 217. A probate record has him living in South Shields. He left effects to an Ada Lock (née Burnell) Foster who was married to Charles Edmund Foster in Hackney London. It is probable that Charles was the brother of Denis.
WO. Thomas Anthony ‘Tommy’ Leyden. Runnymede Memorial Panel 214. Born on the 29th August 1917 in Bolton. Son of John and Mary Ellen (née Sudworth) Leyden of Bolton, Lancashire. Husband to Edith (née Rosbottom) Leyden of Bolton, England.
Flt Sgt. Graham Leslie Osmond-Jones. Runnymede Memorial Panel 221. Son of Arthur and Zelma Ayliffe Osmond-Jones of Kidlington, Oxfordshire. Husband to E. H. Osmond-Jones.
Sgt. Kenneth Callaby. Runnymede Memorial Panel 226. Son of Robert and Agnes Callaby of Horsforth, Yorkshire, England.
Flt Sgt. Norman Arthur White. Runnymede Memorial Panel 223. Born in 1st Qtr of 1909 in Chertsey, Surrey. Son of George and Louise Margaretta (née Wallis) White of Walton-on-Thames, Surrey, England.
Researched by Ralph Snape for Aircrew Remembered and dedicated to the relatives of this crew (Dec 2024).
Other sources listed below:
RS 17.12.2024 - Initial upload
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them. - Laurence
Binyon
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Last Modified: 17 December 2024, 08:20