Lancaster DS830 at East Moor airfield.

On 2nd January 1944 the crew of this aircraft took off from East Moor at 00.30hrs for Ops to Berlin. On their return leg and at around 07.30hrs while they were over Calais the pilot discovered the throttle on the port inner engine had jammed at cruising power. On arrival at East Moor a landing was attempted with three engines throttled back and the port inner jammed on a much higher power setting. The aircraft overshot the first attempt at landing and the pilot applied power and went around for another go. On the second approach the aircraft touched down safely but because the port inner could not be throttled back the aircraft swung off the runway and across the grass, narrowly missing flying control before being brought to a halt on an empty disperal pan. The aircraft sustained some minor damage on the way with Cat.A(c)/FB being recorded.

Brian Shields reports in his "East Moor Experience" book that the crew were then debriefed and crawled into bed by 10.30hrs. They were woken at 17.00hrs and briefed that they were to return to Berlin on Ops the next night.

Pilot - P/O Thomas B Spink RCAF (J/18812), of Vancouver, Canada.

FEng - Sgt John Banks,

Nav - F/Sgt Donald Harmon RCAF, of Banff, Alberta, Canada.

AB - P/O Francis J Naylor RAF (162617), of Newton le Willows, Lancashire.

WOp/AG - Sgt J MacFarlane,

AG - Sgt L Proulx, Possibly Lionel Proulx RCAF, of USA.

AG - F/Sgt W Leadley.

Thomas Spink RCAF was born in Vancouver in 1919 where he enlisted on 26th June 1941. Flying Lancaster DS788 with the same crew as listed above on 3rd/4th January 1944, they were involved in a more serious incident avoiding a collision with an enemy FW200 gunship. The pilot of the Lancaster put his aircraft into a steep dive for 6,000ft he eventually levelled out. The crew then realised that the oxygen supply had been damaged. whilst over the target they then released that the electrics had also been damaged and this prevented the bombs being released electrically. They were later dropped after being released by hand. On the return leg the pilot was hand fed oxygen by the flight engineer from a hand bottle where they made a landing at Coleby Grange. It was then discovered that the photo-flash had been rolling around the aircraft making a hole in the floor. For his actions on this night Thomas Spink was awarded a richly deserved DFC. While his DFC was awarded for the actions in January 1944 he was not actually given it until much later, possibly as he declined to accept it. It was mailed to him in Canada in March 1949. He served in the RCAF post-war. The citation for his DFC reads...

"This officer was a pilot of an aircraft detailed to attack Berlin one night in January 1944. On the outward flight the aircraft was hit by bullets from a fighter. The oxygen supply began to leak. Despite this Pilot Officer Spink continued his mission although the target was still some 200 miles distant. In spite of much physical discomfort caused by the lack of oxygen, Pilot Spink reached and bombed his objective and afterwards flew the damaged aircraft back to base. He displayed great determination, fortitude and devotion to duty."

Don Harmon was born in January 1917 in Banff, Canada. On 29th May 1943 he was flying operationally in the UK and was in Wellington HE553 when the aircraft crashed on Fremington Edge, near Reeth, Swaledale, Yorkshire. Sadly a number of the crew were killed but he, Sgt Naylor and Sgt Leadley survived. These three men later returned to operational flying with 432 Squadron. In total Don Harmon completed 32 operational flights. Having survived the War he returned home to Canada and took over his father's photography buisness, Byron Harmon Photos. The company is still in buisness and their website "www.harmonphotography.com" shows many of his brilliant landscape photographs. He died in August 1997, he was eighty years old.

It is likely that his brother Lloyd Moore Harmon (J/27622) also served in the RCAf and was Commended for Valuable Services with 435 Squadron on 1st January 1947. He too was born in Banff and enlisted in Calgary in April 1942. He amassed a huge number of hours in the air, some 1675 hours, of which 1100hrs were operational. He was also recommended for the AFC in April 1946, the draft for this reads.. "Flying Officer Harmon has been employed on transport duties since September 1944. Prior to joining this squadron in September 1945, he has been employed in the Middle East on transport routine services and supply dropping in the Balkans and Greece. He rendered further valuable service in India and on the Burma front on close support and supply dropping. Whilst on this unit he has been an inspiration to all by his skill and determination in carrying out schedule European services through the winter months, many of which were operated in extreme adverse weather conditions."

Francis Naylor received his commission on 4th November 1943 to P/O on probation (emergency), he rose to F/O (war subs) on 4th May 1944. Sadly F/O Naylor was later posted to 83 Squadron and was to be killed only days before the War ended. On 10th April 1945 Lancaster ME423 was hit by flak on Ops to Leipzig and whilst baling out he slipped out of his parachute and was sadly killed. He is buried in Nederweert War Cemetery, Holland. He was twenty four years old.
Lancaster DS830 was built to Contract ACFT/239 by Armstrong Whitworth Ltd at Baginton and was delivered into MU storage in September 1943. It was issued to 432 Squadron in late November 1943. It sustained Cat.A(c)/FB damage in the incident detailed above and was repaired on site. The repair was completed by 14th January 1944. It was then transferred to 426 Squadron at Linton on Ouse on 9th February 1944 when 432 Squadron began converting to Halifaxes. It then transferred to 408 Squadron at Linton on Ouse in April 1944 when 426 Squadron began converting to Halifaxes. It was later transferred to 1668 HCU at Bottesford in July 1944 when 408 Squadron again converted to Halifaxes. It completed it's service life with 1668 HCU and was struck off charge on 20th March 1945.

The incident listed at the top of this page was the DS830's seventh operational flight and P/O Spinks ninth. DS830 went on to complete twelve Ops with 432 Squadron before transfer to 426 Squadron and P/O Spink completed fifteen operational flights with 432 Squadron, with three of these being on Wellingtons and twelve on Lancasters. He was posted out in February 1944. The aircraft carried the nose art "Bobby Boy" with 432 Squadron, this was the name of Tom Spink's young son.