Halifax LK754 at East Moor airfield.
At 18.25hrs on 24th February 1944 this 432 Squadron Halifax crashed on take off from East Moor airfield with the crew about to begin an operational flight to bomb Schweinfurt's ball bearing factories. The aircraft swung to starboard while still on the ground and while the swung was partly corrected it did not take off or stop on the runway, it came to rest in trees near the airfield perimeter and the crew are believed to have escaped serious injury.
Pilot - F/O Earle Kerr Reid RCAF (J/14021).
Second Pilot - F/Sgt Arthur Clarke RCAF (R/156755).
Flight Engineer - Sgt John Albert May RAF (575531).
Navigator - F/O James Talbot Smith RCAF (J/24217).
Bomb Aimer - WO2 Vincent Charles MacDonald RCAF (R/147836).
Wireless Operator / Air Gunner - F/Sgt George Glen Maguire RCAF (R/137281).
Air Gunner - Sgt Robert Leon Clarkson RCAF (R/200564).
Air Gunner - Sgt Joseph James Barr RCAF (R/197019).
Robert Clarkson was born on 14th February 1923 in Danville, Illinois, USA and was the son of Robert and Ilo (nee Singleton) Clarkson. Both his parents died when he was young and he was brought up by his grandmother in Hamilton, Ontario. He was working as a crane operator when he enlisted for RCAF service on 2nd November 1942 in Hamilton and after training in Canada he was awarded his Air Gunner's badge on 1st October 1943. He married Mavis Belle Russell in Hamilton on 9th October 1943. On arrival in the UK he trained at 1666 HCU before posting to 432 Squadron on 17th January 1944 and received a commission on 29th March 1944.
Halifax LK754 was built to contract ACFT/891 by Fairey Aviation Ltd at Stockport and was taken on charge as new by 432 Squadron at East Moor on 16th February 1944 where it carried the squadron code "QO-Z". The aircraft's AM Form 78 states that it sustained Cat.Ac/FA damage as a result of the crash on 24th February 1944 which would have seen it repaired on site at East Moor. Whether this was the last it was flown by 432 Squadron is anyone's guess. A major problem with the aircraft's AM Form 78 exists and an error in logging it being lost in March 1944 further compounds the problem with this aircraft's history. Halifax LK754 next appears being used operationally in the 432 Squadron orb on the nights of 13th / 14th March 1944, then 15th / 16th March 1944, 18th / 19th March 1944, 22nd / 23rd March 1944, 24th / 25th March 1944, 26th / 27th March 1944 and again on 30th / 31st March 1944 when the squadron records list the aircraft as failing to return from an operational flight to bomb Nurnburg (which should probably be MZ504). This must be an error in identifying which aircraft was being flown by 432 Squadron as "QO-Z" during March 1944. I suspect that the aircraft was initially assessed on site following the crash at East Moor on 24th February 1944 as being Cat.Ac/FA but this was then re-assessed as more serious Cat.B that required a repair in a works factory, probably YARD at Rawcliffe. The repair took some months. The aircraft's AM Form 78 states that it was next issued to 76 Squadron at Holme-upon-Spalding Moor. It does not give a date when it was issued to 76 Squadron. Their ORBs list it being first flown operationally on 23rd September 1944 with it carrying the squadron code "Q-". It was in constant use operationally until 16th November 1944. It next appears being flown by 76 Squadron on 29th November 1944 but with the squadron code "-F" and then changing to "-N" on 29th December 1944. The aircraft's AM Form 78 states that it sustained Cat.Ac/FB damage on 28th February 1945 which was downgraded to Cat.A. This must have been on Ops on 27th / 28th February 1945 though the squadron records list no damage being sustained. It next appears being used on Ops on 7th March 1945 until 24th March 1945. After this 76 Squadron replaced their aging Halifax MkIII with new Halifax MkVI. I have found it being used 37 times operationally by 76 Squadron between 23rd September 1944 and 24th March 1945. On 25th April 1945 it passed to 45 MU and was then issued to 518 Squadron. The AM Form 78 states it had a Cat.E damage assessment made on 14th July 1945 but this did not write it off fully. On 21st March 1946 it was with 45 MU when a census of aircraft was made. It was struck off charge as scrap on 24th January 1947 and broken up.
In February 1944 432 Squadron had two F/Sgt Clarke's who were pilots on their books in February 1944, but perhaps more remarkable both men were brothers; Arthur and Edward Clarke RCAF. A commissioned P/O Arthur Clarke (J/89944) was killed weeks later in a crash on the North Yorkshire Moors when Halifax LW614 crashed in what is now Dalby Forest. The family then suffered a double tragedy when Arthur's brother Edward Clarke RCAF (J/86745) was lost on 29th July 1944 when Halifax NP702 was lost without trace. Arthur was aged twenty two years old.
F/O Reid and his crew failed to return on the ill-fated night of 30th / 31st March 1944 when their Halifax MZ504 was shot down by a night fighter, at the time of his death F/O Reid had undertook twelve Ops in eight weeks. Sgt's May and Clarkson were also killed, the remaining four became POW's.