Whitley N1502 damaged by flak, returned to Driffield airfield.
On the night of 14th / 15th May 1940 102 Squadron were undertaking Ops to bomb railway marshalling yards in the Oberhausen and Cologne areas of Germany. This aircraft took off from Driffield at 21.16hrs and was slightly damaged by flak but the crew were able to return to make a safe landing at Driffield airfield at 03.31hrs. The identity of the aircraft was "DY-E" in the squadron records and I believe to have been Whitley N1502 though it is recorded in the squadron orb as being Whitley N1528. Whitley N1528 was lost over France the previous month so cannot have been the identity.
Pilot - Sgt Frank George Ernest Tizard RAF (564418).
Second Pilot - P/O Anthony Glyndwr Davies RAF (40806).
Observer - Sgt Walter Livesey RAF (524173), of Manchester, Lancashire.
Wireless Operator / Air Gunner - Sgt George Edward West RAF (620494), of Gipsyville, Hull, Yorkshire.
Air Gunner - Sgt Angus S Wilson (624190). Of Stane, Lanarkshire.
Anthony Davies was almost certainly of Welsh extraction. He received his commission to the rank of P/O probably in late 1930 or early 1940. He rose to F/O on 3rd September 1940 a
nd exactly a year later to F/Lt (war subs). He transferred to the Reserve on 4th April 1942 and later to the Reserve of Air Force Officers in 1943. Having survived the War he remained
in the RAF Reserve of Officers until relinquishing his commission of F/Lt on 1st August 1955.
Frank Tizard was born in the Staines area of Middlesex in 1913. He was Mentioned in Despatches pre-February 1940 and was awarded the DFM on 22nd October 1940. He was reported missing
on 10th January 1942 while flying in Anson AX536 on No.2 Air Observer School (2AOS), the aircraft swung on take off and crashed into the sea with the loss of five airmen, he is listed on
the Runnymede Memorial Panel 73.
P/O Davies and Sgt Wilson were pilot and rear gunner of Whitley P5073 on 24th October 1940 when the aircraft was shot down near Linton on Ouse by an enemy aircraft. Davies survived
despite being injured. Sgt Angus Wilson died on 2nd November 1940 and is buried in Stane Cemetery, Lanarkshire. This incident is also recorded on this website.
Sgt Livesey and Sgt West were involved in the incident to Whitley T4136 at the end of October 1940, the crew were forced to bale out over North Yorkshire and their aircraft crashed
near the village of Ebberston near Scarborough. Again this incident is recorded on this website. Sadly a month later both were reported as missing following Ops to Le Havre in Whitley
P5077. I thank Sgt Livesey's son for an enjoyable evening in 2011 and for the additional information has has been able to provide to numerous other Whitley incidents recorded on these pages.