Halifax R9495 damaged by flak, returned to Leeming airfield.

On the night of 16th / 17th June 1942 the crew of this 10 Squadron aircraft were one of a number of 10 Squadron tasked with flying an operational flight to bomb Essen and took off from Leeming at 22.40hrs. Due to thick cloud they bombed a secondary target of Bonn but the aircraft was slightly damaged by flak. They were able to make a safe return to base and landed at Leeming at 03.39hrs.

Pilot - F/Sgt K J Clarke.

Navigator - Sgt J D Hughes (Probably Sgt John Douglas Hughes RAFVR (951749)).

Bomb Aimer - Sgt Ronald Walter Bruce Blanchard RAFVR (934008).

Wireless Operator / Air Gunner - Sgt K H Walker (Probably Sgt Kenneth Haigh Walker RAFVR (960705)).

Air Gunner - Sgt J T Williams.

Air Gunner - Sgt J Hallas.

Flight Engineer - Sgt Sidney Thomas Arthur Rouse RAFVR (902694).

Halifax R9495 was built to contract 692649/37 by Handley Page Ltd. at Radlett. The aircraft was taken on charge by 10 Squadron at Leeming on 13th March 1942. As a result of battle damage on 17th June 1942 minor Cat.A/FB damage was the assessment damage which saw it repaired on site. Once repaired it was transferred to 102 Squadron on 29th June 1942. It was lost on 6th August 1942 when it failed to return from Ops to Bochum with it's then crew all being killed. Cat.E(m) damage was recorded on the paperwork and it was struck off charge on 8th August 1942.
All of the above named except Sgt Blanchard went with the 10 Squadron contingent to 10/227 Squadron in North Africa and then later to 462 Squadron in North Africa.

Sidney Rouse had survived the collision between Halifaxes V9981 and L9614 in December 1941 at Leeming. He received a commission on 5th April 1943 (145481) and was awarded the DFC for service with 77 Squadron as Acting F/Lt on 30th June 1944.

Sgt Hughes may have been a Sgt John Douglas Hughes RAFVR (951749) who received a commission in April 1943 (145336) and was killed flying Mosquitoes with 627 Squadron on 1st February 1944. He was son of Rev.Canon John Hughes MA and Elsie Hughes of Sudbury, Suffolk and is buried in Hanover War Cemetery and was 23 years old.

Sgt Walker may have been a Sgt Kenneth Haigh Walker (960705) who was also a wireless operator and if so then he received a commission on 19th November 1942 (137336). On the night of 7th October 1944 he was flying with 161 Squadron on SOE duties in Stirling LK238 when the aircraft was shot down by a Junkers Ju88 over Denmark, one of his then crew was killed but be baled out and survived but became a PoW. He later received the DFC for service with 161 Squadron with notification printed in the London Gazette on 27th March 1945. He remained in the RAF at least until 1954 when he transferred to the Fighter Control Branch.

An air gunner Frank Hallas RAFVR (1019157) received a commission on 18th November 1942 and as F/O (137525) was later awarded the DFC for service with 466 Squadron. He may well be the same person who served with 10 Squadron earlier in the war.

Ronald Blanchard survived the crash of Whitley Z9162 at Londonderry, Leeming on 7th December 1941 with 10 Squadron (detailed on this website) and returned to operational flying. He was later awarded the DFM for service with 10 Squadron, Gazetted in July 1943 but the citation appears to contain an error as the squadron ORB states that the aircraft was returning from Ops without having dropped the bomb load. The citation reads.."early in his operational career, the aircraft in which F/Sgt Blanchard was flying as air bomber struck a house while taking off (possibly error). The crew only just managed to get clear before both the aircraft and its bombs exploded. In spite of this harassing experience, F/Sgt Blanchard has continued to operate with undiminished enthusiasm, and on many occasions has taken over air-bomber's duties in an emergency. On one of his four flights to Essen, after the aircraft had been repeatedly illuminated by searchlights and forced down over the target, the bombing run was finally accomplished". He received a commission on 13th May 1943 to the rank of P/O on probation (emergency) (146088) and he rose to F/O on probation (war subs) six months later on 13th November 1943 and to F/Lt (war subs) on 13th May 1945.

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