Lancaster ED369 damaged flak, returned to Breighton airfield.
On the night of the 3rd / 4th April 1943 the crew of this 460 Squadron aircraft were tasked with an operational flight to bomb Essen and left Breighton at 19.56hrs.
Before they reached the target area the aircraft was hit by flak which damaged the bomb doors and prevented them from being opened,
the aircraft also sustained damage to the port inner engine, the bomb door hydraulic system and the tail plane. They were unable
to drop their bomb load so returned and landed safely at Breighton at 01.57hrs.
A press report archived in "Trove.nla.gov.au" details this incident well with much of the information given by the pilot in an interview, he stated that the aircraft was attacked around sixteen miles before they reached the target area and an engine was set on fire, the crew put the fire out and the aircraft continued to the target area but then they realised that the damage to the bomb doors and the hydraulic system meant they could not drop their load. The crew attempted to mend the hydraulic system by pouring coffee into it to fill the hydraulic system to open the doors but this did not work. Damage to the rudder trimming mechanism had also been caused, the pilot had to apply his body weight to the rudder bar to keep it flying straight and he had to do this across the North Sea. As they were about to land they realised that one of the main tyres had burst. The pilot had considered ordering his crew to bale out but they stayed in the aircraft to attempt a landing when it was found that the aircraft would not fly straight when the pilot let go of the controls. The pilot reported that he flew around the airfield for ninety minutes and then landed, the aircraft swung around but the bomb load remained intact and the crew left the damaged aircraft. The aircraft cannot have been too badly damaged as it was repaired and was damaged again on Ops on 20th April 1943.
Pilot - F/Sgt Kenneth William Giles RAAF (416258), of Cherry Gardens, South Australia
Navigator - F/Sgt Robert William Morgan RAAF (411585), of Mosman, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
Bomb Aimer - F/Sgt Stanley Gordon RAAF (403922), of Mosman, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
Wireless Operator / Air Gunner - F/Sgt Albert James Mohr RAFVR (1204969)
Flight Engineer - Sgt Edward Geoffrey Sutton RAFVR (994635).
Air Gunner - Sgt Alfred William Delohery RAAF (411216), of Neutral Bay, New South Wales, Australia.
Air Gunner - Sgt G R Smith. (Possibly Sgt George Russell Smith RCAF (R/58116)).
Kenneth Giles was born in 28th April 1911 in Cherry Gardens, South Australia and enlisted into the RAAF in Adelaide. He awarded the DFM for service with 460 Squadron, Gazetted on 17th August 1943. He was still living in April 2011 aged 100 years old.
Robert Morgan was born on 6th December 1921 in Bankstown, New South Wales and enlisted into the RAAF in Sydney. He was awarded the DFM for service with 460 Squadron, Gazetted on 13th August 1943.
Stanley Gordon was born on 20th February 1918 in Sydney and enlisted into the RAAF there. He was also awarded the DFM for service with 460 Squadron, Gazetted on 13th August 1943.
Alfred Delohery was born in Neutral Bay on 28th February 1916 and enlisted into the RAAF in Sydney. After this flak incident he would
later received a commission. He was awarded the DFC for service with 460 Squadron, Gazetted on 14th November 1944.
Edward Sutton was awarded the DFM for service with 460 Squadron, Gazetted on 16th November 1943. He received a commission on 5th May 1944 to the rank of P/O on probation (emergency), he was later promoted to F/O on 5th November 1944 and F/Lt on 5th May 1946.
Albert Mohr received a commission on 18th November 1943 (170657), and was later promoted to F/O (war subs) on 18th May 1944 and F/Lt on 18th November 1945. He remained in the RAFVR and finally relinquished his commssion as F/Lt in RAFVR on 27th July 1954.
If the last named above was indeed Sgt George Smith then he was later posted to 166 Squadron. On 27th September 1943 he was flying in Lancaster ED875 on Ops to Hannover, a problem with the aircraft resulted in the crew making an early return to Lincolnshire. The aircraft crashed near Caistor with the loss of the whole crew. F/Sgt Smith was twenty nine years old and is buried in Cambridge City Cemetery. He was the son of William and Agnes Smith of Vancouver and was born on 7th May 1914.
Lancaster ED369 was built to contract B.69274/40 by A.V. Roe and Co. Ltd, at Chadderton. It was initially taken on charge by 460 Squadron at Breighton on 8th December 1942. As a result of battle damage sustained on both 4th April 1943 and 21st April 1943 Cat.A/FB damage was the damage assessment each time and a repair on site was carried out each time. 460 Squadron moved to Binbrook on 14th May 1943 and the aircraft followed but was re-coded "AR-A". On 9th July 1943 it sustained Cat.B/FB damage when it landed wheels up at Hawkinge after sustaining flak damage on an operational flight to Cologne. As a repairs were begun on 23th July 1943 it was Re.Cat.E and struck off charge.