Halifax JD303 damaged by flak, returned to Pocklington airfield.

On the evening of 19th November 1943 the crew of this 102 Squadron aircraft took off from Pocklington airfield at 16.30hrs to undertake an operational flight to bomb Leverkusen. During the course of the flight the aircraft received damage due to flak and the navigator sustained injuries. The aircraft landed at Pocklington at 22.39hrs.

Pilot - F/Sgt R G Wilding RARVR (1181063).

Navigator - Sgt L Cannock. Injured. (Possibly Lionel Eric Cannock RAFVR (1339403)).

Wireless Operator / Air Gunner - Sgt T K Buxton RAFVR (1210668).

Air Gunner - F/Sgt R Kelly.

Air Gunner - Sgt Claude Herbert Shephard RAFVR (1813933).

Flight Engineer - Sgt J L Corrigan RAFVR (109819).

Bomb Aimer - Sgt J C Heap RAFVR (1516756).

The injured navigator may well have been Lionel Eric Cannock RAFVR (1339403) and if correct then he was possibly fairly seriously injured but would later return to operational flying. On 27th February 1945 he was flying as a navigator with 76 Squadron in Halifax LL579 on ops to Mainz when the aircraft crashed in the target area with the loss of five of the seven crew including him. He was twenty two years old and is buried in Rheinberg War Cemetery.
Wilding, Buxton, Shepherd, Corrigan and Heap were flying in 102 Squadron Halifax LW227 on 20th January 1944 when the aircraft was badly damaged. All baled out and became PoWs.

I have not been able to identify Sgt Kelly as yet.

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