Pat Flyer
Pre-Flight
It took a long time for me to be conscious of the fact that this plane, and mostly it’s crew, held an essential part in the birth of my passion.
On 8 June 1944, in the dark of the night, a crew from the British Bomber Command, on a bombing mission of the Versailles Matelots train station in France, crashed in the forest of Rambouillet between the villages of Montfort l’Amaury and Les Mesnuls.
Based at Upwood, near Cambridge, the plane tail number ND517, GT-E, an Avro Lancaster belonging to the 156 Squadron of the Royal Air Force, took off at 00h58.
The crew had the following members :
Canadian Squadron Leader:HOPTON Cecil George - Pilote – RCAF - DFC – Service nr J/19003. Born in Montréal in 1918, he enrolled at Niagara Falls, Ontario. He had 46 combat missions.
Flight Lieutenant: CONLON William Michael - Navigator n° 2 – RAF Volunteer Reserve DFC – Service nr 133539 – 23 years old from Littleborough, Lancashire.
Sergeant: CAMPBELL Ian - Gunner – RAF Volunteer Reserve – Service nr 1822580.
Flight Sergeant: GIBBS Leslie Edward – RAF Volunteer Reserve – Service nr 1801366 – 22 years old from East Dulwich , London.
Flight Lieutenant: GILLIS Hartley David – Navigator n° 1– RAF Volunteer Reserve – DFC - Service nr 170350 – 21 years old from Paddington, London.
Warrant Officer: LARKINS Alfred Robert – Gunner – RAF Volunteer Reserve – Service nr 1189479 – 29 years old from Ramsgate, Kent.
Flight Lieutenant: MOYES Peter James – Radio/Gunner – RAF Volunteer Reserve – DFC - Service nr 160518.
Flight Lieutenant: WOOD David Telfer – Navigateur/ Bomber – RAF – Service nr 51836 – 24 years old from Lundie, Angus.
156 Squadron was specialized in target marking to help the bomber flights hit their targets. They were one of the Pathfinders. They also very regularly took up normal bombing missions.
That night, the mission was to bomb the rail yards of the Versailles Matelots station. They are near the Pièce d’Eau des Suisses and the famous chateau of Versailles, a forbidden target.
I haven’t found the reasons of the crash : flak, german night fighters or technical problems. Nonetheless the plane crashed in the forest of Rambouillet near a section called the Brulins. Unfortunately there were no survivors.
Some villagers of Les Mesnuls were witnesses of the fall and at sunrise, with the prior agreement of the local German officers went in the forest to collect the remains of the crew for burial. A religious ceremony was held in the Saint Eloi church of Les Mesnuls and they were buried after that in the cemetery next to the church.
Interesting fact : Madame Virginie Bianchini, one of these incredible characters who always rise in troubled times was the only one around who mastered the piano. She thus volunteered to play the church organ. The German officer overseeing the process was very clear in the fact that honoring the crew was ok but there was not to be the least patriotic outburst or severe punishment would be taken. But that was not what would stop Madame Bianchini. At the end of the ceremony she played « God Save the King ». Confronted by the very mad officer she explained that had it been him she would have played the German anthem. The officer let the matter rest.
But why this plane, this crew ? Why were they at the origins of my passion for flight ?
The answer is quite simple. I grew up in the village of Les Mesnuls. At a minimum every Sunday, and on many more occasions I was to pass in front of the tomb.
For years, I would regularly stop to read, and read again, the names engraved on the stone and reflect on this ultimate sacrifice.
I had the chance to talk to Madame Bianchini and with other witnesses of the event. They were my neigbors, my parents plumber, etc.
Meanwhile, unknowingly, I spent many hours playing in the forest of Rambouillet. With friends from Montfort L’Amaury, I sometimes played in the section called Les Brulins. We enjoyed this part of the forest because there was a specific area planted with pine trees and with many holes that looked like bomb holes. This was great for our war games or for bicycle jumps. I didn’t know at the time that our war game zone was an actual war zone where the Lancaster crashed many years before. It was the place where the war hereos of my village lost their lives. The sign that is there now did not exist at the time.
It is only many years later that the links were made in my mind when during a walk in the forest I discovered the sign that was put up.
That is why this plane and its crew are part of the birth of my passion for flight. The hereos of 8 June 1944 had created a lasting reference and ideal to build my passion.
Today, my father is buried just a few yards away and draws me back to them, making me remember the priceless gift these men gave to us, as all those who fell with them.
Note : Since 2005 the tomb carries a new name. It is the one of F/L R. B. Leigh. He was part of the crew as navigator and should normally have been on that flight. On the day of the mission he was excused (reasons not recorded). When he died, one of his last wishes was to be buried with his comrades. His request was granted and he joined them during an official ceremony.
The Lancaster was on the whole a rather ungainly plane of the kind that British engineers produced on several occasions. But it was a fantastic workhorse with a larger load capacity than the Boeing B-17. At the end of the war it could even carry the 10000 kg Grand Slam bomb. It was operated a crew of seven. It was an efficient place, appreciated by its crews.
Technical information :
Engines : 4 V12 Rolls-Royce Merlin 1280 hp engines.
Wingspan : 31m
Length : 22m
Hight :6m
Speed : 450 km/h
Capacity : traditionally 8000 kg but could go up to 10000 kg with the « Grand Slam ».
Patrick
http://www.qualified-quail.com/
On 8 June 1944, in the dark of the night, a crew from the British Bomber Command, on a bombing mission of the Versailles Matelots train station in France, crashed in the forest of Rambouillet between the villages of Montfort l’Amaury and Les Mesnuls.
Based at Upwood, near Cambridge, the plane tail number ND517, GT-E, an Avro Lancaster belonging to the 156 Squadron of the Royal Air Force, took off at 00h58.
The crew had the following members :
Canadian Squadron Leader:HOPTON Cecil George - Pilote – RCAF - DFC – Service nr J/19003. Born in Montréal in 1918, he enrolled at Niagara Falls, Ontario. He had 46 combat missions.
Flight Lieutenant: CONLON William Michael - Navigator n° 2 – RAF Volunteer Reserve DFC – Service nr 133539 – 23 years old from Littleborough, Lancashire.
Sergeant: CAMPBELL Ian - Gunner – RAF Volunteer Reserve – Service nr 1822580.
Flight Sergeant: GIBBS Leslie Edward – RAF Volunteer Reserve – Service nr 1801366 – 22 years old from East Dulwich , London.
Flight Lieutenant: GILLIS Hartley David – Navigator n° 1– RAF Volunteer Reserve – DFC - Service nr 170350 – 21 years old from Paddington, London.
Warrant Officer: LARKINS Alfred Robert – Gunner – RAF Volunteer Reserve – Service nr 1189479 – 29 years old from Ramsgate, Kent.
Flight Lieutenant: MOYES Peter James – Radio/Gunner – RAF Volunteer Reserve – DFC - Service nr 160518.
Flight Lieutenant: WOOD David Telfer – Navigateur/ Bomber – RAF – Service nr 51836 – 24 years old from Lundie, Angus.
156 Squadron was specialized in target marking to help the bomber flights hit their targets. They were one of the Pathfinders. They also very regularly took up normal bombing missions.
That night, the mission was to bomb the rail yards of the Versailles Matelots station. They are near the Pièce d’Eau des Suisses and the famous chateau of Versailles, a forbidden target.
I haven’t found the reasons of the crash : flak, german night fighters or technical problems. Nonetheless the plane crashed in the forest of Rambouillet near a section called the Brulins. Unfortunately there were no survivors.
Some villagers of Les Mesnuls were witnesses of the fall and at sunrise, with the prior agreement of the local German officers went in the forest to collect the remains of the crew for burial. A religious ceremony was held in the Saint Eloi church of Les Mesnuls and they were buried after that in the cemetery next to the church.
Interesting fact : Madame Virginie Bianchini, one of these incredible characters who always rise in troubled times was the only one around who mastered the piano. She thus volunteered to play the church organ. The German officer overseeing the process was very clear in the fact that honoring the crew was ok but there was not to be the least patriotic outburst or severe punishment would be taken. But that was not what would stop Madame Bianchini. At the end of the ceremony she played « God Save the King ». Confronted by the very mad officer she explained that had it been him she would have played the German anthem. The officer let the matter rest.
But why this plane, this crew ? Why were they at the origins of my passion for flight ?
The answer is quite simple. I grew up in the village of Les Mesnuls. At a minimum every Sunday, and on many more occasions I was to pass in front of the tomb.
For years, I would regularly stop to read, and read again, the names engraved on the stone and reflect on this ultimate sacrifice.
I had the chance to talk to Madame Bianchini and with other witnesses of the event. They were my neigbors, my parents plumber, etc.
Meanwhile, unknowingly, I spent many hours playing in the forest of Rambouillet. With friends from Montfort L’Amaury, I sometimes played in the section called Les Brulins. We enjoyed this part of the forest because there was a specific area planted with pine trees and with many holes that looked like bomb holes. This was great for our war games or for bicycle jumps. I didn’t know at the time that our war game zone was an actual war zone where the Lancaster crashed many years before. It was the place where the war hereos of my village lost their lives. The sign that is there now did not exist at the time.
It is only many years later that the links were made in my mind when during a walk in the forest I discovered the sign that was put up.
That is why this plane and its crew are part of the birth of my passion for flight. The hereos of 8 June 1944 had created a lasting reference and ideal to build my passion.
Today, my father is buried just a few yards away and draws me back to them, making me remember the priceless gift these men gave to us, as all those who fell with them.
Note : Since 2005 the tomb carries a new name. It is the one of F/L R. B. Leigh. He was part of the crew as navigator and should normally have been on that flight. On the day of the mission he was excused (reasons not recorded). When he died, one of his last wishes was to be buried with his comrades. His request was granted and he joined them during an official ceremony.
The Lancaster was on the whole a rather ungainly plane of the kind that British engineers produced on several occasions. But it was a fantastic workhorse with a larger load capacity than the Boeing B-17. At the end of the war it could even carry the 10000 kg Grand Slam bomb. It was operated a crew of seven. It was an efficient place, appreciated by its crews.
Technical information :
Engines : 4 V12 Rolls-Royce Merlin 1280 hp engines.
Wingspan : 31m
Length : 22m
Hight :6m
Speed : 450 km/h
Capacity : traditionally 8000 kg but could go up to 10000 kg with the « Grand Slam ».
Patrick
http://www.qualified-quail.com/
