400526 - Unaccounted Airmen - 26-05-1940

[Martyn A Critchlow]

AIR 81/443 1940 Jan 01 – 1949 Dec 31
Leading Aircraftman W H Lay:
report of death from injuries received during a bombing raid, France, 26 May 1940

Martyn





Author: Henk Welting. (Guest)
Time Stamp:
14:37:34 19 October 2007
Post:
What caused the death of LAC William LAY - 535739 - died of wounds or injuries received on active service (Flight Global), buried St.Ever Cem. Ext., Rouen, Dept. Somme.


Regards and thanks for your help.

Henk.


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RE: 'Unaccounted' airman - 26-5-1940 (France)
Author: Finn Buch (Guest)
Time Stamp:
18:28:45 19 October 2007
Post:
Hello Henk,


LAC William H. Lay, 535739 - (75 Wing)


Regards


Finn Buch


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RE: 'Unaccounted' airman - 26-5-1940 (France)
Author: Henk Welting (Guest)
Time Stamp:
09:22:29 20 October 2007
Post:
Thanks Dave for info on unit. Perhaps Joss will have more; let's wait and see.

Regards,

Henk.


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RE: 'Unaccounted' airman - 26-5-1940 (France)
Author: Joss Leclercq (Guest)
Time Stamp:
10:56:29 20 October 2007
Post:
hello,


Sorry Henk, out of my usual range of research.


But if I may, the correct spelling is St Sever, in Rouen, and Rouen is in the Seine-Maritime dpartement (number 76) not in the Somme...


Joss


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RE: 'Unaccounted' airman - 26-5-1940 (France)
Author: Henk Welting (Guest)
Time Stamp:
12:36:19 20 October 2007
Post:
Thanks Joss for the corrections, will amend my files.

Best regards,

Henk

[dennis_burke]

Cheers Martyn

if your bringing more old threads in this series back to life, will you start the thread title with the date format

YYMmDD, its helps if I get around to updating the spreadsheet index, Cheers

[Martyn A Critchlow]

OK Dennis, I understand and will do.
Although I suddenly thought that I could open new threads from the old archived ones, and place them in the 1940 Unaccounted folder.

I have now finished working through the details of AIR 81 that has so far been released.

Martyn

[Alex Smart]

Hello,

400526 - Unaccounted Airmen - 26-05-1940

From Henk's list -

FRANCE
LAY, William Henry - Lac - 535739 - RAF.
St. Sever Cemetery Extension, Rouen, Seine-Maritime, France.
Cause of death ?

UK
CUNNINGHAM, William - Sgt - 28961 - RAF - 2 CPF.
Cramond Parish Churchyard, Edinburgh, UK.
McLEAN, Charles Murdo - AC1c - 614699 - RAF - 2 CPF.
Edinburgh Eastern Cemetery, Edinburgh, UK.
These two airmen were crew of Tiger Moth II - N9202 - 2 CPF.

BEAUMONT, Geoffrey Nethercote - Lt(A) - HMS Glorious - RN - 825 Sqn FAAa, RN.
Lee-on-Solent Memorial, Hampshire.
Swordfish - "5H" - 825 Sqn, FAA, RN.
Aircraft returned, was it P3992 ?

From CWGC -

BELGIUM
HAYWARD, Eric George - Sgt - 564673 - RAF - 103 Sqn.
HUBBARD, William Frank - Sgt - 620073 - RAF - 103 Sqn.
These two airmen rest at Ucimont Churchyard, Luxembourg, Belgium.
They were crew of Battle I - L5514 - 103 Sqn.

BROGAN, Albert Charles - AC2c(Wop) - 552071 - RAF - 59 Sqn.
SCHWIND, Gordon Louis - Sgt(Obs) - 581353 - RAF - 59 Sqn.
These two airmen rest at Warneton ( Waasten) Communal Cemetery Hainaut, Belgium.
They were crew of Blenheim IV - R3613 - 59 Sqn.

FRANCE
ANDERSON, Colin Cecil Robert - P/O(Pilot) - 40350 - RAF - 88 Sqn.
BUTLER, Richard William - Sgt(Obs) - 520538 - RAF - 88 Sqn.
WILKS, Edmund - Sgt(Wop) - 537423 - RAF - 88 Sqn.
These three airmen rest at Haraucourt Churchyard, Ardennes, France.
They were crew of Battle I - L5467 - 88 Sqn.

BAILEY, Gerald Montague (New Zealand) - P/O(Pilot) - 42330 - RAF - 53 Sqn.
EVANS, William John Kelsall - Sgt(Obs) - 580951 - RAF - 53 Sqn.
GILMORE, Alan Arthur - AC1c(Wop) - 552644 - RAF - 53 Sqn.
These three airmen rest at Bayenghem-Les-Seninghem Churchyard, Pas-de-Calais, France.
They were crew of Blenheim IV - L8863 - 53 Sqn.

SYDENHAM, Frank - P/O(Pilot) - 77793 - RAF(AAF) - 73 Sqn.
Chuffilly-Roche Communal Cemetery, Ardennes, France.
Hurricane I - P3274 - 73 Sqn,( Henk's Y0043).

NETHERLANDS
SHAW, Richard Ernest - P/O(Pilot) - 42575 - RAF - 59 Sqn.
Jonkerbos War Cemetery, Gelderland, Netherlands.
Blenheim IV - R3613 - 59 Sqn.

KENYA
PEYTON, Hugh Chinnery (Southern Rhodesia) - F/O - CR/2916 - SRAF - 1 Sqn SAAF.
Nairobi ( Forest Road ) Cemetery, Kenya.
KIMPTON, Frederick Harold - Cpl - CR/606 - SRAF - 1 SAAF.
Nairobi War Cemetery, Kenya.
These two airmen were crew of Hardy - K5914 - 1 SAAF.

UK
LITTLEWOOD, Harold George - AC1c - 630251 - RAF - 16 Sqn.
Hawkinge Cemetery, Kent, UK.
Lysander P1685 (?).

ARMSTRONG, Ernest Peareth - Lac(Wop) - 573130 - RAF - 235 Sqn.
Stockton-on-Tees (Durham Road ) Cemetery, Durham, UK.
MURPHY, Alfred Hall - P/O - 78255 - RAF - 235 Sqn.
Great Bircham (St. Mary ) Churchyard, Norfolk, UK.
These two airmen were crew of Blenheim IV - P6956 - 235 Sqn.

WELFORD, John Hylton - F/O - 39588 - RAF - 65 Sqn.
Minster ( Thanet) Cemetery, Kent, UK.
Spitfire 1a - P9437 - 65 Sqn.

The eight airmen listed below all are commemorated on the Runnymede Memorial, Surrey, UK.

ADYE, Capel Francis Goodson - F/Sgt - 28173 - RAF - 17 Sqn.
Hurricane I - P3483 - 17 Sqn.
JONES, William Thomas - F/Sqt- 590275 - RAF - 17 Sqn.
Hurricane I - N2528 - 17 Sqn.

COOK, Horace James - P/O - 77351 - RAF - 22 Sqn.
JAMIESON, Frederick Robert - F/O - 37855 - RAF - 22 Sqn.
MACKENZIE, Alan Duncan - Lac - 623407 - RAF - 22 Sqn.
MELLOR, Harry Manners - Wng/Cdr - 16097 - RAF - 22 Sqn.
These four airmen were crew of Beaufort I - L4450 - 22 Sqn.

CAMERON, John Stewart (Cuba) - P/O - 33458 - RAF - 37 Sqn.
PARKHOUSE, Raymond Cranmer - Sgt - 580833 - RAF - 37 Sqn.
These two airmen were crew of Wellington Ic - L7793 - 37 Sqn.
Both airmen are linked to the SS. Abukir loss in AIR81/722 along with Sqd/Ldr GLENCROSS. Also the a/c serial is incorrectly given as P7793 or it was a/c "LF-P", L7793

Alex

[Andy Marden]

KENYA
PEYTON, Hugh Chinnery (Southern Rhodesia) - F/O - CR/2916 - SRAF - 1 Sqn SAAF.
Nairobi ( Forest Road ) Cemetery, Kenya.
KIMPTON, Frederick Harold - Cpl - CR/606 - SRAF - 1 SAAF.
Nairobi War Cemetery, Kenya.
These two airmen were crew of Hardy - K5914 - 1 SAAF.


Alex,
I think the reference to South African Air Force should actually be to the Southern Rhodesian Air Force. Their 1 Sqn became 237 (Rhodesia) Squadron on 22 April 1940, so this should be the unit listed I think – Air Britain’s K serials does indeed list the last unit as 237 Sqn.
Andy

[malcolm_raf]

Hi

Lay - He was serving with No 75 Wing and died from wounds sustained during a bombing raid.

"CUNNINGHAM, William - Sgt - 28961 - RAF - 2 CPF.
Cramond Parish Churchyard, Edinburgh, UK.
McLEAN, Charles Murdo - AC1c - 614699 - RAF - 2 CPF.
Edinburgh Eastern Cemetery, Edinburgh, UK.
These two airmen were crew of Tiger Moth II - N9202 - 2 CPF."

Alex - where is the info on Cunningham and McLean from? There appear to be no death registrations for them in Scotland

Malcolm

[Alex Smart]

Re N9202, this forum's serial number database.
Cemetery details from CWGC.

[Andy Marden]

Interestingly Tiger Moth guru Malcolm Fillmore has this to say about N9202:
"Crashed into hill in cloud Ladyland Moor, Ayr 26.5.40; Flt Lt Reginald Patrick Mahoney Gibbs injured."
So clearly there is some confusion about this loss.

[wwrsimon]

Hello

CUNNINGHAM, William - Sgt - 28961 - his headstone reads 'died May 26th 1940 aged 56.'

See: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/95044103/william-cunningham

From that, the Scotland's People website records that William Cunningham, Clerk of Works and husband of Elizabeth Gray, died on May 26th at 7.45 a.m. at 1, Glebe Terrace, Cramond due to hemiplegia.

Regards

Simon

[malcolm_raf]

Cheers Simon

I had mistakenly ruled him out as he was 56.

Malcolm

[jonheyworth]

Charles Murdo McLean 614899 , attached to Number 10 BGS , was admitted seriously ill to the RN Hospital, Portland , on 5 April becoming dangerously ill on 26 May and was transferred to RAF hospital, Halton , where he died of peritonitis and tubercular broncho pneumonia