430407 - Unaccounted airmen - 7-4-1943

[Henk Welting]

What were the places of death registration for:

A - Not found in Flight Global:
Cpl Norman D. CARLTON - 1262795 - age 28 (died on the Isle of Wight).

B - Killed on active service:
Sgt (WOp/Ag) Anthony DEARMER - 1251401.

C - Died on active service:
LAC Francis W. DUMMIGAN - 1501094, and
W/O Leslie D. JONES - 580204.

D - Proposed aircraft loss:
Anson I - DJ656 - 6 AOS - crashed on approach Wootton Basset, Wiltshire.

E - Also looking for what caused the death of:
F/O John C.W. WALTER - DFC - 112394 (from N.Rhod.) - 6 Sqn (Sfax/El Maoui) - buried Beja War Cem., Tunisia; Hurricane lost (shot down by flak) on anti-tank sweep near Sfax, Tunisia. (6 Sqn lost Hurricanes HV594, HW266 and HW313).

Regards and thanks for your help.
Henk.

[malcolm_raf]

Hi Henk

Carlton - Isle of Wight, a Nellie Carlton aged 30 is also registered in the same quarter, husband and wife?

Dearmer, Dummigan and Jones - not Eng/Wales.

6 Sqn also lost Fg Off CLARK, ALFRED HOWARD MAYHEW (109112) and Flt Sgt HASTINGS, ERIC VICTOR (655316) but I don't know who was flying what.

Malcolm

[Resmoroh]

Henk,
Just a minor point. I presume you mean that DJ656 crashed AT Wootton Bassett on approach TO Lyneham (runway 25). Wootton Bassett is some 4 n miles from Lyneham, and is now famous (or infamous!) for being the town where the full military and civilian honours are paid to the coffins of the fallen - returned from Afghanistan to RAF Lyneham. The good citizens of that town appear on national TV too often, and for the wrong reasons, paying tribute as yet another coffin is driven in state down the High Street.
Yrs Aye
Peter Davies

[alclark]

No.1 TTU recorded the following, I think that Bearmer was actually Dearmer.

April 7th 1943, “Beaufort DX 114 ditched by F/O Taylor, Sgt Bearmer killed.”

[Theletterwriter]

Henk

Sgt (WOp/Ag) Anthony DEARMER - 1251401 aged 22 : found in the sea 2 miles North East of Ailsa Craig : death registered at Dailly, County of Ayr, Scotland.

LAC Francis William DUMMIGAN - 1501094 aged 20 : found on Cromarty Beach at the Cromarty Firth : death registered at Cromarty, County of Ross and Cromarty, Scotland.

W/O Leslie D. JONES - 580204 aged 30 : death registered at Rosskeen, County of Ross and Cromarty, Scotland.

Regards

Douglas

[Ross_McNeill]

Hi,

Alan is correct for Dearmer on DX114.

Dummigan and Jones were gale crew for W6001 lost along with 124945 F/0 R J Dunford.

APRIL 7TH. - CROMARTY.
At 6.35 in the morning a message came from the R.A.F. that several of their seaplanes had broken adrift from their moorings, with their crews aboard, that they had not enough boats to face the storm, and that they would be glad of the life-boat’s immediate help. A strong N.W. gale was blowing, with a rough sea, and there were heavy showers of sleet. The motor life-boat James Macfee was launched at 7.15, went to the seaplane base, took two R.A.F. officers on board, and then patrolled round the seaplanes and gave them valuable help. They were all made safe except one, which had foundered. The life-boat searched the firth for her crew of six men, but they had all been drowned. She also reported by wireless to the authorities on shore that a petrol barge at moorings west of Invergordon, with no one aboard, was sinking.
This message probably led to the barge being saved, for, as soon as the weather moderated
slightly, R.A.F. men went out and boarded her, just in time to prevent her from sinking.
After the life-boat had returned to her station, a small R.A.F. launch, No. 867, was seen
drifting about three miles from shore, and the life-boat went out again. She found no one on board the launch, towed her into harbour, and returned to her station at 11.45. - Rewards, £4 7s. 6d.

Regards
Ross

[Henk Welting]

Thanks all for this excellent info.
Ross and Douglas: I had DUNFORD on W6001 and also - as a plane guard - Sgt (WOp/Ag) John W. BURROWS - 1315874 - killed. Could this be confirmed ?
Best regards,
Henk.

[Theletterwriter]

Henk

F/O Richard Jack DUNFORD 124945 : death recorded as 20 May 1943 : found in Nigg Bay, Nigg : death registered at Nigg, County of Ross and Cromarty, Scotland.


Sgt John W. BURROWS 1315874 : Found on Cromarty beach, The Cromarty Firth : death registered at Cromarty, County of Ross and Cromarty, Scotland.

Douglas

[Henk Welting]

Thanks Douglas.
BURROWS also may have been a casualty on Sunderland W6001.
DUNFORD listed by CWGC as 7-4-1943; 20-5-1943 in the death register could have been the date that his body was found washed ashore ?
Regards,
Henk.

[Ross_McNeill]

Hi Henk,

"Dummigan and Jones were gale crew for W6001 lost along with 124945 F/0 R J Dunford."

Dunford was the Officer in charge of the crew and lost with the two others when W6001 broke up.

ORB says three onboard W6001, five killed that night but does not give names.

Also foundered at Alness was AH568 killing watch crew Sgt N K Carew and Sgt E Havron who may have been included in the above total.

I would hesitate to attibute Burrows to an aircraft as a considerble number of smaller support craft broke free during the night and his death may have been due to this or he may have been on AH568, with Dunford counted as missing not dead(hence 5 killed).

Regards
Ross