400721 - Unaccounted airman - 21-7-1940

[Henk Welting]

What caused the death of P/O (Airgunner) Philip A. LEACH - 77944 (RAF from Australia) - 38 Squadron (Wellingtons, Marham/Norfolk) - died of wounds or injuries received in action (Flight Global), buried Marham (Holy Trinity) Churchyard, Norfolk (UK2644).

Regards and thanks for your help.
Henk.

[Henk Welting]

What caused the death of:
Cpl Victor A. KEMP - 550575, and
AC1 Francis C. WILLANS - 567878,
both on Panel 1, Column 2 of the Malta Air Forces Memorial and missing believed killed on active service (Flight Global).

Regards and thanks for your help.
Henk.

[Amrit]

Willians and Kemp were lost in Swordfish K8369 piloted by Flight Lieutenant Leslie Gregory (POW). Full details can be found in the first two paragraphs of this link:

http://surfcity.kund.dalnet.se/italy_calistri.htm

(Willans is given as Williams)

A

[Henk Welting]

Thanks Amrit; this was an excellent closure for today.
Regards,
Henk.

[Dick]

Hi Henk
There is a death of a Philip A Leach, age 35, registered at Downham in Norfolk which would tie in with a death at Marham or a nearby Hospital. His name is also in Chorley Vol 9 the Roll of Honour but not in Vol 2 which suggests that the a/c got back safely but with a dead or wounded crew member
Regards
Dick

[paulmcmillan]

Bomber Command War Diaries confirms 95 aircrfat to 6 German targest that night - Can anyone confirm 38 Sqn involved

[Henk Welting]

Thanks Dick for info. Let's see whether Paul may have a response to his question re 38 Sqn.
Regards,
Henk.

[Dick]

Hi All
Chorley Vol 9 gives Leach's Sqn as 38.
Regards
Dick

[wwrsimon]

Apologies for dragging this one out of the distant past, but can anyone provide any further info on the Swordfish in question?

The link mentioned states that the RAF sent out the Swordfish, but which unit would it have likely to have been with?

Regards

Simon

[dennis_burke]

Swordfish story, by Sturtivant. Says unit 3 AACU Kalafrana. Failed to returned from recce to St. Elmo. Aircraft was assigned to unit in 1938.

[wwrsimon]

Thanks Dennis, much appreciated.

Regards

Simon

[Martyn A Critchlow]

Pilot Officer P A Leach: report of death; Wellington P9287 in air operations, 21 July 1940
AIR 81/1168

Martyn

[jonheyworth]

Charles Edward Clark 1163233 was accidently shot at RAF Finningly by aircraftman Thomas H Barnes

[jonheyworth]

Joseph Ernest Catchpole 754642 , attached to Number 4 EFTS , died in an aircsrew accident

[Alex Smart]

Hello,

400721 - Unaccounted Airmen - 21-07-1940

From Henk's list -

EGYPT
WYNN, Rowland John William - PO(A) - F.55068 - HMS Eagle - RN.
Cairo War Memorial Cemetery, Egypt.
Cause of death ?

UK
CATCHPOLE, Joseph Ernest - Sgt - 754642 - RAFVR - 4 EFTS.
Elloughton (St. Mary) Churchyard Extension, Yorkshire.
Cause of death - Hit by a rotating aircraft propeller .

CLARK, Charles Edward - AC2c - 1163223 - RAFVR.
Basingstoke ( Worting Road ) Cemetery, Hampshire.
Cause of death - Shooting accident. Accidently shot by another airman.

LEACH, Philip Allen ( Australia) - P/O - 77944 - RAFVR.
Marham ( Holy Trinity ) Churchyard, Norfolk.
Wellington Ic - P9287 - 38 Sqn.

From CWGC -

MALTA
KEMP, Victor Alfred - Cpl - 550575 - RAF.
WILLIAMS, Francis Christopher - AC1c - 567878 - RAFVR.
These two airmen are commemorated on the Malta Memorial, Malta.
They were crew of Swordfish I - K8369 - 3 AACU.

GERMANY
MUIRHEAD, George Hamilton - P/O - 42632 - RAF.
PHILLIPS, Frank Herbert Edward - Sgt - 567099 - RAF.
WINCH, Frederick John Baulch - Sgt - 640278 - RAF.
These three airmen were crew of Wellington Ic - R3210 - 37 Sqn.
They rest at Reichswald Forest War Cemetery,Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany.

UK
DOWNER, Alan Richard - P/O - 80820 - RAFVR.
New Southgate Cemetery, Hertfordshire.
Hurricane I - P2917 - 263 Sqn.

PARKINSON, Cecil - Sgt - 741376 - RAFVR.
Stoke (St. Michael) Churchyard, Warwickshire.
Hurricane I - P3766 - 238 Sqn.

SEED, John Arthur - LA - FX.78986 - HMS Daedalus - RN.
Preston ( Newhall Lane ) Cemetery, Lancashire.
Hart (T) - K6485 - 1 FTS.

The following twenty-five airmen are commemorated on the Runnymede Memorial, Surrey.

BENNETT, Leslie Charles - AC1c - 570382 - RAF.
DAVIS, Edward Simeon Colbeck - Wng/Cdr - 16107 - RAF - OBE - MiD.
DIXON, Denton Percy - Sgt - 610629 - RAF.
FRAME, Dennis John - Lac - 535408 - RAF.
LILLIE, William Gray - Sgt - 538981 - RAF - DFM.
MACDONALD, Gerald Edwin (Canadian) - P/O - 42067 - RAF.
OVENS, Edward William - Sgt - 550833 - RAF.
PAREEZER, Reginald Tony - P/O - 42076 - RAF.
PHILLIPS. Frank - F/Lt - 37827 - RAF - DFC - MiD.
SNEYD, Eric - AC2c - 935024 - RAFVR.
TRICKEY, Trevor Percival Jack - Lac - 635359 - RAF.
WHITE, John Alexander McLaren Gray - AC1c - 967530 - RAFVR
These twelve airmen were crew of Sunderland I - N9028 - 204 Sqn.

DINGLE, Bryan Norman - Sgt - 581277 - RAF.
EDWARDS, David Harold - F/Lt - 39784 - RAF.
GILES, Alexander Joseph - Sgt - 581092 - RAF.
WYLIE, William (Co. Antrim, Northern Ireland) - Sgt - 541172 - RAF.
These four airmen were crew of Hampden I - P4367 - 144 Sqn.

COTTON, Edwin Arthur - Sgt - 742495 - RAFVR.
CURRY, Samuel Walter - Sgt - 551339 - RAF.
MIDDLETON, Dennis - Sgt - 551824 - RAF.
MORRISON, Victor Clement Robert - P/O - 43204 - RAF.
These four airmen were crew of Hudson I - N7305 - 224 Sqn.

ATHER, William Laverick - P/O - 44226 - RAF.
CRABTREE, John James - Sgt - 523092 - RAF.
LAMONT, Albert William - Sgt - 523170 - RAF.
MAHON, Bernard Joseph - Sgt - 635470 - RAF.
These four airmen were crew of Hudson I - N7242 - 233 Sqn.

DE MANCHA, Ricardo Adriani - P/O - 80546 - RAFVR.
Hurricane I - P3973 - 43 Sqn.

Alex

[alieneyes]

MACDONALD, Gerald Edwin (American) - P/O - 42067 - RAF.

Alex,

Not so sure this man was an American citizen. His Form 192 "Death of an American Citizen" states he was believed to be a US citizen but that he was born 5 May 1919, Battleford, Saskatchewan. The backside of the form states "This office has no documentary evidence of the American citizenship of the late Gerald E. MacDonald, but information concerning place and date of birth was supplied by the Air Ministry and taken from their records"

He's also got an entry on the CVWM: https://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/memorials/canadian-virtual-war-memorial/detail/1079267

Regards,

Dave

[Alex Smart]

Thank you Dave, Confirms though that his parents were American, so would it be natural to adopt the fathers nationally ?

[alieneyes]

Hi Alex,

On what basis are you presuming the parents were American?

In this case the man's father, Samuel Lawrence MacDonald, was born in Winnipeg 14 March 1880. He applied for permanent residence ("green card") for the US in 1939 and over the next 10 years he and his wife would enter the US, filling out the standard border crossing form.

The last form for the father that I can find is dated 23 September 1949, almost a decade after his son was killed. Sr. was still a Canadian citizen. There's no family connection that would give the son "automatic" US citizenship. Especially retroactively.

He passed away in Seattle Heights, WA 1 October 1957.

Regards,

Dave

[Alex Smart]

Hi Dave,
Basis was from the detail in the CWGC.
"Son of Samuel Lawrence Macdonald and Hazel C. Macdonald, of Seattle Heights, Washington, U.S.A"
But from what you have it would seem that they may have been Canadians after all.

Have edited my first post
Alex

[wwrsimon]

Hello

With regards to MacDonald, a family tree on ancestry.com records that his father, mentioned above, and mother were resident at Seattle Heights, Washington, U.S.A. in 1940. She was born in West Bay City, Michigan in 1890, and had move to Canada in the mid 1890's where she married her husband in 1906 [aged 16 years and 7 months?].

Regards

Simon