New members and rejoins

FRANK CLEGG from Harrogate was the W.Op on an Anson operating out of RAF Millom, Cumberland. On 12 Dec 1943 he was on a training flight over the Irish Sea when the aircraft had engine failure and ditched - fortunately in the shipping lanes. After 10 hours in the dinghy he was spotted by a Free French cargo boat and taken into Liverpool

PETER ROY DONALDSON from Wendover was the navigator on a 10 Sqn Whitley Mk 5 based at RAF Dishforth. On 10 Jul 1940 they had attacked the German Naval Base at Kiel and were shot down by two ME 109`s approx 20 miles West of Heligoland as they returned. After two to three hours all the crew were rescued by a German fishing boat operating from Heligoland. Peter spent almost 5 years in a variety of P.O.W. camps, including a punishment camp for attempted escapes. He finally escaped from a forced march towards central Germany a few months before the end of hostilities.

LEON SIDNEY DUNMORE from Kintbury, Berks was the observer on a Firefly of 825 Sqn embarked on HMS Ocean. In 1952, while en-route to Korea, he took off on a Navex but the aircraft suffered an engine failure and ditched. He was rescued by the plane-guard destroyer after 10-20 minutes in the water.

WALTER ALEXANDER EACOTT was the pilot of a 603 Sqn Beaufighter Mk X. On 10 Nov 1943 he was on an `Armed Rover Patrol` to the Dodecanese Islands, NE of Crete, attacking shipping and airfields. He was attacked by 6 ME 109`s and shot down after a long chase, with both the stbd engine and wing on fire. He ditched while heading East towards Turkey and after about 18 hours in the dinghy was picked up, with his observer, by a German Arado 196 seaplane. They were flown to Western Crete and thence to Germany.

The Arado 196 was a single engined seaplane. Four were carried on the Bismark. Ed

ALLAN DAVID HURRELL from Barnstaple was the pilot of an 86 Sqn Beaufort 1 based at RAF Wick. On 17 May 1942 he was tasked to intercept the German Cruiser Prinz Eugen off the coast of Norway. He was shot down, in flames, by a ME109 five miles West of Stavanger. The aircraft exploded on ditching.and the rest of his crew were lost. Allan was initially rescued by a motor boat and eventually by a sea plane.

Peter has written his story of this incident and I hope to feature it in a later newsletter. Ed

SIDNEY MARTIN from Kwazulu Natal was the W.Op/AG on a 612 (City of Aberdeen) Sqn Whitley Mk 5. On 26 Aug 1941 they were on an anti-submarine sweep and 300 miles West of the Outer Hebrides when a glycol leak caused the engine to seize and catch fire. The inevitable ditching was followed by about 7 ? hours in two dinghies lashed together. They fired a very cartridge at what they thought was a rescue launch but it turned out to be a German submarine (U 206)! They threw them a line and took them on board and continued their patrol for a further 14 days finally landing them at St Nazaire to the accompaniment of a German band !

Sidney was a member of the crew featured in the article Aircraft `W` for Willie Down in the Drink which was in NL 163 and written by the Captain, H C Winter-Taylor. Ed.

HUGO ALISTAIR STACEY from Truro was the 2nd pilot of a Sea King HAS Mk 2 of 824 NAS `C` Flt embarked on RFA Fortgrange. On 11 Jul 1982 they were engaged on a replenishment sortie between RFA Fortgrange and HMS Leeds Castle in the Falkland Islands Protection Zone. The helicopter suffered engine failure in the hover, while alongside Fortgrange, and belly flopped into the water. The crew escaped into the dinghy and after approx 20 minutes in the sea were rescued by the sea boat from HMS Leeds Castle.

DOUGLAS JAMES CADDY TIPPETTS from Australia was a Radar Flying Instructor on a 3 O.T.U. Catalina PBY5 based at R.A.A.F. Rathmines. On 15 Mar 1945 they were on a night navigation and crew training sortie, off the East coast of New South Wales, when the port engine caught fire and the aircraft was abandoned after an emergency landing at sea.. After five to six hours in the dinghy they were located by another aircraft from No 3 O.T.U. and eventually recovered by an ASR launch. All the crew were saved.

Douglas is a rejoin after many years in the wilderness ! Ed

Welcome to the shoal.