Whitley N1386 damaged by flak, returned to Driffield airfield.
On the night of 20th / 21st May 1940 the crew in this 102 squadron aircraft were tasked with attacking bridges over the River Oise and to disorganise and interfere with enemy movements.
The aircraft sustained slight flak damage but the pilot was able to make a safe return to base of Driffield. The full identities of all of this crew are yet to be learned.
Pilot - P/O James Douglas Warne RAF (40447).
Second Pilot - Sgt Stanley Edwin Masham RAFVR (740246).
Observer - Sgt G Roberts.
Wireless Operator - AC2 R Gates.
Air Gunner - SC2 H Radley. (Possibly Harry Radley (629764)?).
Only weeks later on 19th June 1940 Sgt Masham and his then crew were flying Whitley N1499 were killed on Ops to Sterkrade. Sgt Masham was aged twenty five, he is buried
in Reichswald Forest War Cemetery, Germany. He had lost his father in the First World War, they were the only two Masham casualties of both World Wars. My thanks to Mr Graham
Sharpe for the photograph of his gravestone.
James Warne was born in 1916 in St.Austell, Cornwall. He was granted a short service commission in the RAF as Acting P/O on probation on 9th January 1938 and confirmed
in the rank of P/O on 25th October 1938. His brother Peter Ellis Warne died on RAF service, missing on 17th April 1940 while serving with 107 Squadron flying Blenheim L8041
on Ops to Stavanger. He had two other brothers who served in the Army and Navy. James Warne was promoted to F/O on 25th May 1940, F/Lt (war subs) on 25th May 1941 and to
S/Ldr (temp) on 1st June 1942 and to S/Ldr (war subs) on 23rd June 1942. He was awarded the DFC, Gazetted with other 4 Group personnel on 22nd October 1940 while in the
rank of Acting F/Lt, and the Bar to the DFC, for service with 58 Squadron, Gazetted on 21st November 1941 while in the rank of Acting S/Ldr. He was also awarded the DSO,
Gazetted on 22nd January 1943 for service wth 148 Squadron while in the rank of Acting W/Co and was Mentioned in Despatches on 11th February 1947 for distinguished service
in South East Asia, terminating on 30th November 1946, while in the rank of Acting W/Co. He remained in the RAF Post-War and was appointed to a commission of
S/Ldr on 1st September 1945. He was awarded the CBE on an unknown date. He rose to W/Co on 1st January 1951 and to G/Cpt on 1st January 1958 before retiring. He died in 1991 in Surrey.
Whitley N1386 was built to contract 75147/38 by Armstrong Whitworth Ltd at Baginton and was awaiting collection in October 1939. It was delivered
into MU storage but quickly issued to 102 Squadron then based at Driffield in November 1939 when the unit began to re-equip with Whitley MkV's, having operated
Whitley MkIII's from October 1938. Cat.M/FB was recorded following two flak damage incidents in May 1940 (this incident above being the second) and it was repaired
on site by a team from Marshall's, of Cambridge, who were permanently based at Driffield purely for the purpose of battle damage repair of Whitley's and were kept busy.
The aircraft was returned to unit and moved with the unit to a number of bases over the following months, on 25th August 1940 it moved with the unit to Leeming, on 1st
September 1940 to Prestwick, on 10th October 1940 to Linton on Ouse and on 15th November 1940 to Topcliffe. In early 1941 it was transferred to 19 OTU at Kinloss where
many Whitleys passed through. On an unknown date it was transferred to 10 OTU at Abingdon but by 2nd December 1944 it had been transferred to long term MU storage. It was
struck off charge on 28th June 1945 to be broken up and re-used in aircraft production.