Leslie "Spike" Moran was born in 1922 in Middlesex. He enlisted into the RAFVR in June 1941 and was mobilized on 13th October 1941. He trained as a wireless operator at No.2 Radio School at Yatesbury beginning in March 1942, he first flew in a series of basic wireless operator training flights in Domonie aircraft followed by further training in Proctors, he passed the course on 7th May 1942. He was later posted to 9 (O)AFU and completed an Advanced Signals Course on 17th May 1943. Having completed all of his training he was posted to 408 Squadron in September 1943 and undertook further training flights with 408 Squadron between 24th September and 29th September 1943 he flew with F/O Clark on six training flights including four GEE practice flying on four occasions and a Bullseye training flight. Moran did not fly with F/O Clark again until 11th October 1943 when they took up Lancaster "C" (probably DS737) for a cross country training flight and it then became their regular aircraft. His wireless operating skills were assessed at 408 Squadron on 10th November 1943 and he qualified as a Grade I Wireless Operator. The days between 29th September and 11th October was probably the time when F/O Russell Clark was preparing for and undertaking his first "Dickie" operational flight with another crew. Moran flew with F/O Clark twice more on training flights before 22nd October and once with F/O White. F/O Clark and crew flew their first operational flight on 22nd October 1943, their operational flights and details surrounding them are detailed on a seperate webpage.
He suffered head injuries as a result of the accident to Lancaster DS737 on 16th December 1943 but managed to walk away to find help; eventually finding his way to Hawnby Post Office. He was almost certainly admitted to the Friarage Hospital in Northallerton with the other surviving members of his crew.
Having recovered from his injuries he returned to 408 Squadron and his first flight after the accident was on 11th February 1944. He did not become a regular wireless operator in another crew but appears to have acted as a spare wireless operator. Known flights he made were on 11th February (with F/O Fulton), 23rd February (with F/O Rognan), 29th May (with P/O Sutherland and landed at Croft), 29th May (with F/Lt Franking, returning with another aircraft to base) and 20th June (with P/O Kasper). No further details of the flights he made are known. In total he made seven completed operational flights.
He received a commission to the rank of P/O on probation (emergency) on 28th June 1944 in the General Duties Branch (179519), he was promoted to F/O (war subs) on 28th December 1944 (with seniority of 26th December 1944) and was also transferred to the Admin and Special Duties Branch on 28th December 1944. He was promoted to Acting F/Lt on 1st July 1946 but left the RAFVR on 15th December 1946 at the end of his terms for service.
Les Moran died in the Brighton area of Sussex in 1998.
I thank Mr Henry Goodall for contacting me in November 2011, he was a neighbour of Les Moran and his wife. Mrs Moran and has kindly allowed his logbook and other photographs and papers of Les's service to be copied and included on this website. It is through this generosity that I have been able to give this incident and the crew better biographies than perhaps others on the website have currently received. I am endebted to Mrs Moran for allowing these documents to be copied and to Mr Goodall for forwarding them to me. The crew photograph shown on the main page to Lancaster DS737 came from Mrs Moran, as did the portrait of her husband shown above.