On the night of 24th / 25th June 1943 the crew of this 10 Squadron aircraft took off from Melbourne airfield at 22.56hrs to undertake an operational flight to bomb Wuppertal. They bombed the target area at 01.18hrs from 19,500 feet on the PFF target markers but while over the target area the aircraft received minor flak damage to the tail. Despite the damage the crew managed to make the return to base and landed at Melbourne at 04.23hrs.
Pilot - Sgt Charles Raymond Skerrett RAAF (409240).
Navigator - Sgt John Philip Strachan RAFVR (1320655).
Bomb Aimer - Sgt Ronald William Dando RAFVR (1322837).
Wireless Operator / Air Gunner - Sgt Ronald Hill RAFVR (1218294).
Air Gunner - Sgt Harold Pasquill RAFVR (1077989).
Flight Engineer - Sgt Philip Robert Fox RAF (575854).
Air Gunner - Sgt Norman Edwin Weighell RAFVR (1094049), of Dunsdale, Yorkshire.
All of the above apart from Sgt Pasquill were later posted to 78 Squadron. They were killed with 78 Squadron on 27th September 1943 when Halifax JD416 failed to return from Hannover and are buried in Hannover War Cemetery.
Halifax DT792 was built to contract B.982938/39 by English Electric Co. Ltd. at Samlesbury and was taken on charge by 10 Squadron at Melbourne on 3rd February 1943. The aircraft received minor Cat.Ac/FB damage when it overshot on landing at Melbourne on 5th April 1943. The repair was begun two days later and it was returned to 10 Squadron on 7th May 1943. On the night of 24th / 25th June 1943 it was slightly damaged by flak that probably resulted in Cat.A/FB damage and a repair on site benig made. There is no reference to this on the aircraft's AM Form 78 suggesting it was very minor. On 3rd August 1943 it returned to Melbourne badly damaged on an operational flight on Hamburg. On landing the undercarriage collapsed and it was further damaged. Cat.B/FB damage was the initial damage assessment but on 14th August 1943 it was re-assessed as Re.Cat.E that saw it then struck off charge. It had flown a total of 196 flying hours.
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