B-17 CC Additional Material by Robert M Stitt

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Sgt Joseph Edouard Roch Boudreault. (Laurette Chagnon) Laurette Chagnon: “Roch sent most of his pay cheque to my mother to help her make both ends meet for our large family. Thanks to my big sisters and brothers, I could keep studying nursing and public health. In 1944, my mother received $354.00 that Roch had willed to her.” “In 1997, I received an invitation to attend the annual 220 Squadron reunion, this time held in Stratford-on-Avon. We had learned that Maureen Diehl, the caretaker of the cemetery in the Azores, was trying to trace our family… so we combined the trip to England with one to The Azores. At Stratford we met, for the first time, the courageous men of 220 Squadron. They reminisced about their World War Two experiences and gave us our first opportunity to find out what had happened to Roch. “We learned that his aircraft was packed with food, cigarettes and other things not available in England and there was a rumour in Canada that Roch was on his way to England to be decorated. The reunion organizer [former 220 Squadron WOp/AG] Joe Ayling confided in me: ‘You know that if Roch had lived you could have had links with my family.’ It turned out Roch was very fond of Joe’s sister and was hoping to visit her after the plane arrived in England. “Roch loved flying so much. Aeroplanes meant adventure, challenge, a passion for something new and extraordinary. Although he died in an aeroplane, he was at the same time realizing his greatest passion.” With special thanks to Laurette Chagnon, sister of Roch Boudreault. Jack Delarue on gaining his pilot’s flying badge, April 1941. (via Edgar Delarue) The house at 3 Dangar Street, Lindfield, New South Wales, where Jack Delarue was born on March 24, 1916. (via Edgar Delarue) Jack Edmond Delarue ‘That’s Jack Delarue! A fantastic cricketer… bowled left-handed and batted with his right. A very good all-round sportsman and a good friend to have.’ That is how 91-year-old Group Captain Paul Metzler, RAAF retired, responded on being shown photograph of his former school mate while visiting a new exhibit at the Historical Society Rooms, located at Old Gordon Public School where both were pupils in the 1990s. Jack Edmond Delarue was born in Lindfield, New South Wales, Australia – some 12 miles north of Sydney – on March 24, 1916. He was the first child of commercial traveler Leopold Emile Victor Delarue and his wife Hilda Majel Cliff. He had two bothers and one sister. A keen sportsman, who grew to love cricket and golf, Delarue attended the local primary school in the Ku-ring-gai District until his teachers tried to dissuade him from being left-handed. Outraged, his mother moved him to the main school at Gordon. On leaving school, Delarue joined the Rural Bank of New South Wales as a clerk. On August 19, 1940, Delarue enlisted as an Aircraftsman 2 at 2 Initial Training School at Bradfield Park, New South Wales, joining Course 4(P). Two months later, he was posted to 8 Elementary Flying Training School at Narrandera to begin training on de Havilland Tiger Moths. Over 3,800 student pilots trained at Narrandera under the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan. With his primary training completed after 51:40 hours of flying, Delarue departed Sydney for Canada on December 28, 1940, and on arrival was attached to the RCAF for training on Avro Ansons with 7 Service Flying Training School at RCAF McLeod, Alberta. He received his pilot’s flying badge on April 14, 1941, was promoted to Sergeant Pilot, and recommended for flying bomber types. Remustered as an Airman Pilot, Delarue was attached to the RAF and posted to 31 General Reconnaissance School at Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, to continue training on Avro Ansons in preparation for joining RAF Coastal Command and the vital campaign against the U-boats. He flew a total of 131:40 hours on Ansons. Delarue departed Halifax by ship for the United Kingdom on August 15, 1941, and was posted to 1 (Coastal) Operational Training Unit at RAF Silloth on October 13, to begin training on Hudsons in advance of joining an operational squadron – two months later, on December 25, he was posted to 206 Sqn at RAF Aldergrove, Northern Ireland. His first operational flight took place on February 20, when a flew as second pilot with Flt Sgt S L A Goodson on an anti-shipping sweep in Hudson AM566 ‘F’. On February 28, Delarue was promoted to Pilot Officer and from March 7 was detached to RAF Stornaway as part of a strategy to position the relatively short-range Hudson closer to the convoy routes and U-boat operating areas. His first flight as captain took place on April 12, a six-hour sweep in AM711 ‘E’, and on the night of June 25/26 he led one of twelve crews provide by 206 Sqn for the third so-called ‘1,000-bomber raid’. Taking off from RAF Donna Nock, a satellite field for RAF North Coates on the Norfolk coast, he dropped his bombs on the city of Bremen, although it proved impossible be- 6
Former 8 EFTS Tiger Moth A17-440 (US registration N17440), restored in its original wartime finish for United Airlines captain, Dave Harris. (Dave Harris) cause of heavy cloud for any of the squadron crews to identify their assigned target, the U-boat building yard of Deschimag AG Weser. Delarue landed AM792 ‘B’ back at North Coates at 04:54. 206 Sqn moved to RAF Benbecula in the Outer Hebrides on July 1, 1942, and by the end of the month Delarue had completed thirty-two operational flights on Hudsons, the last being a combined anti-submarine sweep and search-and-rescue sortie on July 29 in AM792. He was promoted to Flying Officer on August 28 and four days later the squadron ceased operational flying to begin training on the Fortress. Delarue had flown 492:40 hours on Hudsons and would accumulate 36:45 hours flying the Fortress during the work-up period. Delarue’s first sortie on the new type was scheduled for the early morning of October 6, 1942. Well into his take-off roll, he was confronted with another Fortress taxiing towards him on the runway. Flg Off Jack Edmond Delarue died along with four of his crew members when Fortress FL454 ‘J’ stalled and crashed into the sea as he attempted to fly over the other aircraft (book pages 57–58 for more details). With special thanks to Jo Harris and Edgar Delarue, brother of Jack Delarue Flg Off Jack Edmond Delarue’s headstone in the Nunton Church cemetery near Benbecula airfield. (Martin Briscoe) Some of the remains of Fortress IIA FL454 ‘J’ after they had been towed to the beach. The long structure is the rear spar. (via Chris Ransted) 7
Page 1 and 2: Boeing B-17 Fortress in RAF Coastal
Page 3 and 4: could fight their way to and from a
Page 5 and 6: manding officer of the 28 th BS, de
Page 7 and 8: Medium-altitude attack on ships in
Page 9 and 10: onto the northern Solomons, New Bri
Page 11 and 12: The Hudsons flew 13 missions into W
Page 13 and 14: 41-9234 in 1955, 12 years after the
Page 15: Boeing B-17 Fortress in RAF Coastal
Page 18 and 19: 13-7-44 Dakota III KG771 Montreal -
Page 20 and 21: 27-8-44 Liberator VI KH160 Montreal
Page 25 and 26: This sample Crew Member/ Aircraft T
Page 30 and 31: Fortress II FA700 ‘R’. Beaty an
Page 34 and 35: Aviator’s certificate issued to C
Page 36 and 37: Pair of Junkers Ju 88 R-2s of 13/KG
Page 38 and 39: Anson Is and Harvard Is at No. 6 SF
Page 40 and 41: Anthony Pinhorn’s sister, Wendy,
Page 42 and 43: Richard Weatherhead with the six ot
Page 44 and 45: Inscription commemorating Richard J
Page 47 and 48: Fortress Aircrew Casualties Eighty-
Page 49 and 50: Sgt Garfield Charles Wilson, age: 2
Page 51 and 52: Panel 130, Runnymede, Surrey. F/Sgt
Page 53 and 54: Son of Leslie George and Kathleen B
Page 55 and 56: Sergeant Robert Fabian, age 24. Roy
Page 60 and 61: MKS. III, IV, V and VI A.S.V. There
Page 62 and 63: good chance of being effective if d
Page 64 and 65: Pilots and W/T operators must be fu
Page 67 and 68: Take-off Across the Steel Planked R
Page 72 and 73: Extract from Cle Lamb’s logbook f
Page 75 and 76: Ken Brailsford’s War This photo e
Page 77 and 78: Logbook page documenting the forced
Page 79 and 80: Brailsford’s logbook for February
Page 81 and 82: Unidentified Martin Maryland at LG.
Page 83 and 84:
Air tests and ferry flight to Habba
Page 85 and 86:
Return of AN518 to Karachi over Aug
show all

B-17 CC Additional Material by Robert M Stitt

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?