Lancaster ED369 damaged by flak, returned to Breighton airfield.
On 20th / 21st April 1943 the crew of this 460 Squadron aircraft were tasked with an operational flight to bomb Stettin and left Breighton at 21.33hrs.
They bombed the target area at 01.38hrs marked by the PFF and reported good visibility. On landing at Breighton
at 07.10hrs the aircraft was found to have a few holes caused by flak.
Pilot - Sgt Geoffrey Jonathan Oakeshott RAAF (416385), of Eastwood, Adelaide, South Australia.
Navigator - Sgt William John Cameron RAAF (409520), of Camperdown, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
? - Sgt William Patrick Brannelly RAAF (405821), of Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia.
? - Sgt Basil Meenan Treacy RAAF (415095), of Perth, Western Australia.
Flight Engineer - Sgt Bernard John Wisby RAFVR (1425927), of Aldburgh, Suffolk.
? - Sgt N C Durrant.
Air Gunner - Sgt Francis Roy Goldsworthy RAAF (416378).
Geoffrey Oakeshott's service records are on the NAA website and they add a lot of information on his service. He was born on 20th April 1922 in St.Peters, South Australia and enlisted in Adelaide on 24th May 1941. When he enlisted into the RAAF he was working as a clerk for the South Australian Gas Company and was living in Eastwood, South Australia. After basic training he was awarded his Wings on 6th February 1942 and left Australia in May 1942. On arrival in the UK he trained at 11 (P)AFU begining 29th August 1942 and while training there he was the pilot of Oxford ED134 on 8th October 1943, while taxiing at Shawbury the aircraft collided with another Oxford and both aircraft were damaged. He was later posted to 27 OTU begining 13th October 1942, 1656 CU begining 20th March 1943 and was then posted to 460 Squadron on 13th April 1943. He completed a Tour with 460 Squadron in October 1943 and was awarded the DFM, Gazetted on 7th December 1943. He had received a posting to 1662 CU on 25th October 1943 and was granted a commission in the same month. His postings after this are not known but he was posted to No.7 Group HQ in 1944 which was involved in the control of the Heavy Conversion Units. He was promoted to F/O on 23rd April 1944 and F/Lt on 23rd October 1945.
William Brannelly's service records are also on the NAA website and they add a lot of information on his service. He was born in Rockhampton on 7th June 1915 and enlisted into the RAAF in Brisbane on 21st June 1941 and after basic training as an air observer he left Australia by boat on 16th June 1943 arriving in England two months later. He then trained at 10 (O)AFU begining 17th September 1942, 27 OTU begining 13th October 1942 and was posted to 460 Squadron on 30th October 1942. After serving with 460 Squadron he was later posted to 82 OTU on 25th October 1943. He would receive his commission to the rank of P/O on 11th January 1944 and was promoted to F/O on 11th July 1944. By the end of the War he had been posted back to Australia and served with 25 RAAF Squadron flying Liberators over the Pacific.
William Cameron was born on 5th December 1910 in Myrtleford, Victoria and enlisted into the RAAF in Melbourne in 1941. At the time of enlisting he was working for the Bank of New South Wales in Melbourne. He was awarded the DFC for service with 460 Squadron, Gazetted on 7th December 1943.
Basil Treacy was born in 1913, he was awarded the DFM for service with 460 Squadron, Gazetted on 16th December 1943. He died in 2000.
Francis Goldsworthy was born on 15th June 1916 in Brinkworth, South Australia and enlisted into the RAAF in Adelaide on 24th May 1941. After basic training as an air gunner he arrived in the UK and trained at 27 OTU and 1656 CU and was posted to 460 Squadron on 13th April 1943. He completed a Tour with 460 Squadron and was posted to 83 OTU on 4th November 1943. He received a commission on 9th January 1944 to the rank of P/O and was posted to 27 OTU as an instructor in March 1944. He was then promoted to F/O on 9th July 1944 and returned to Australia in late 1944 and flew with 25 RAAF Squadron in 1945 before leaving the RAAF before the end of 1945.
Bernard Wisby was later posted to 156 Squadron, he received a commission on 18th April 1944 but the notification in the London Gazette was not printed until June 1944. He was promoted to F/O on 18th October 1944. On 17th December 1944 he was flying in Lancaster PB675 on Ops to Ulm, the aircraft crashed near Champigneul-Champagne and all on board were killed. F/O Wisby was twenty two years old and is buried in Clichy Northern Cemetery, France.
Lancaster ED369 was built to contract B.69274/40 by A.V. Roe and Co. Ltd, at Chadderton. It was initially taken on charge by 460 Squadron at Breighton on 8th December 1942. As a result of battle damage sustained on both 4th April 1943 and 21st April 1943 Cat.A/FB damage was the damage assessment each time and a repair on site was carried out each time. 460 Squadron moved to Binbrook on 14th May 1943 and the aircraft followed but was re-coded "AR-A". On 9th July 1943 it sustained Cat.B/FB damage when it landed wheels up at Hawkinge after sustaining flak damage on an operational flight to Cologne. As a repairs were begun on 23th July 1943 it was Re.Cat.E and struck off charge.