Lancaster W4939 damaged by flak, returned to Breighton airfield.
On the night of the 16th / 17th April 1943 the crew of this 460 Squadron aircraft were tasked with an operational flight to bomb Pilsen and took off from Breighton at 20.58hrs. They bombed the target area a 01.46hrs from 9,000ft, the aircraft was hit by flak bursts and sustained minor damage to the fuselage and the tail plane but were able to make a safe return and land at Breighton at 05,53hrs. Six of the seven named below (not Sgt Brimelow) were involved in a flak incident on 3rd April 1943 and were able to return to Breighton.
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 William Bradbury Brimelow RAFVR (1518162).
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.
William Brimelow was awarded the DFM for service with 460 Squadron, Gazetted on 19th October 1943. Nothing more is known about his service, he died in Cheshire in 1975.
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 his commission. He was awarded the DFC for service with 460 Squadron, Gazetted on 14th November 1944.
Albert Mohr received his 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 W4939 was built to contract B.69275/40 by Metrovic at Trafford Park and was delivered to A.V.Roe and Co.Ltd at Woodford on 10th March 1943 for assembly and testing. The aircraft was then taken on charge by 460 Squadron at Breighton on 25th March 1943. As a result of battle damage on 17th April 1943 Cat.A/FB damage was the assessment and it was repaired on site. On 14th May 1943 460 Squadron moved to Binbrook. On 20th May 1943 the aircraft's AM Form 78 states that it sustained Cat.Ac/FA damage in a flying accident but how this happened is not yet known. A repair was made on site and it was returned to 460 Squadron on 5th June 1943. On 22nd June 1943 it failed to return from Ops to Krefeld that saw six of the seven crew killed. Cat.E(m) damage was the damage assessment on the paperwork back home.