Squadron Operations: Summary Information

Overview

Listed below is the information available for operations to this target flown by 550 Squadron.

Operation Summary: The column headers should be fairly self-explanatory. The term "aborted" as used here covers a number of possibilities:

• the operation was cancelled before crews were briefed
• the crews have been briefed as to the target, and in some cases the planes may even have been bombed up and the crews on-board at their stations awaiting take-off, before the op has been stood-down
• finally a number of cases where the op was already under way and the planes en-route but for whatever reason the operation was aborted (e.g. the master bomber orders the attack cancelled due to weather conditions at target adversely affecting targeting).

Aircraft Deployed: When a link to a particular aircraft is given, this indicates aircraft known to have taken part in this raid (in the records currently available to the web-site author). A record of whether the aircraft returned or failed to return (FTR) is also logged.

Servicemen Deployed: Names of the crew in the operation.

Station Summary: This section is the information from the RAF North Killingholme Station Record Book for the operational date (if available).

Definitions of the abbreviations used are available: here.

Manageable Lists

The amount of data in the database is growing and this is resulting in the "all operations/targets" list getting rapidly bigger and thus slower to generate. There are options to display shorter, more quickly generated, reports if you want to home in on something specific. For example, there are options to generate reports on operations to a single target, or by single aircraft (to all targets) or by single aircraft to a single target. There is, on the database-reports summary page, a short user guide (PDF format) on how to do this.

Operation/Target: Bochum (04 Nov 1944 - 04 Nov 1944)

Operation Summary
Target	Out	Back	Aborted (Y / N)	Comments
Bochum	04 Nov 1944	04 Nov 1944	N	Twenty six aircraft and crews took off at approximately 17.15hrs to attack BOCHUM in the heart of the Ruhr. Aircraft "G2" (F/O Kennedy) soon after take-off found that his hydraulics were u/s and his wheels would not retract completely; thwarted in his efforts to jettison he made a successful landing at Woodbridge with all his bomb load on board. "E2" (F/O Marriott) found that the rear turret of his aircraft was u/s with an oil leak and abandoned. The remainder found 9/10 cloud en route, but over the channel this decreased and gradually cleared. The target was free from cloud, but a certain amount of industrial haze was present. Markers were punctual and fairly accurate, the target area was kept continuously marked and the bombing was well concentrated, After the incendiary attack developed, the whole area rapidly became a mass of fire, visible for approximately 100 miles and there were a number of impressive explosions. The ground defences in the target area were reported as moderate, occasionally becoming intense, with many searchlights in evidence exposing on cone of about 20 or more, there latter were at first ineffective, but later became more troublesome, several aircraft being coned. Hun night fighters made a strong reaction and figher flares were seen from the Dutch coast onwards. Many combats took place in which the following aircraft of 550 Squadron were involved, "B2" (F/O Whynacht) had 4 encounters and claims to have destroyed 2 aircraft and damaged another, whilst the other was inconclusive. All these appeared to be jet-propelled aircraft. No damage or casualties were received. "M" (F/O McCarthy) and "P" (P/O Franklyn (R)) both opened fire on two jet planes but no claims were made and the encounters were inconclusive. "V" (F/O Blackler) claims to have shot down an aircraft believed to be a jet propelled unit. The appearance of jet propelled and other rocket phenomena is only of recent origin, and these claims are being further investigated, meanwhile these claims are accepted with reserve. All our aircraft returned to Base with the exception of "F" (F/O Ansell) who landed at Manston having received damage to his aircraft from Flak, the F/Eng (F/S Sythes) receiving wounds in the thigh. Photographs brought back show extensive fire tracks. Aircraft "F" completed her 100th operational sortie, a fact that F/L Shaw is very proud of, since he has completed the major part of his tour in this aircraft. P.R.U cover now confirms the great damage done in this attack - the two main factories of first priority importance, with extensive blast furnaces, steel works and rolling mills all making armaments have suffered severely; of the six main buildings of one of them all are extensively damaged. A third factory (adjoining the main passenger station which is heavily damaged) manufacturing, milling and grinding machinery is still smoking and damage appears to be heavy. Destruction of unidentified industrial and commercial premises, and residential property is widespread and severe. [Ed: Can this entry (above) about Shaw/ED905 be correct? The battle order lists F/O W J Shaw in "F2" flying, but no F/Lt D A "Jock" Shaw in ED905 "F". Norman Franks in "Ton-Up Lancs" speculates, based on photos and the mixed up ORB at this point, that the ED905 100th trip was F/Lt D A Shaw 2nd Nov 44 to Duesseldorf. This looks to be confirmed by Jock Shaw log book (information from his daughter). So perhaps the ORB just recorded this information a day or two after the fact. The photo claimed to be ED905 taking off for 100th op may in fact be a photo of the aircraft some weeks earlier; some of the people waving have been positively identified (by John Eppel, Nav F/O J Harris crew, Catherine McIntosh (daughter of F/Lt "Jock" Shaw) and Jenny Dias daughter of Bryan Barby) as being air-crew who were in fact airborne, or taxing for take-off, for the 2 Nov op so could not be standing at the end of a runway waving other crews off!]

Aircraft Deployed			Servicemen Deployed
Aircraft Service Number	Returned or FTR	Comments	Crew Details
EE139	Returned	Primary at 17,000 ft at 19.39 1/2 hrs.
JB345	Returned	Primary at 18,000 ft at 19.45 hrs.	F/L E H Luder (P) Sgt E G Bowman (F/Eng) F/O E H Jones (Nav) F/Lt J Ward (A/B) F/Sgt D M McDonnell (W/Op) Sgt R G Furness (MU/AG) Sgt H Jordan (R/AG)
NF998	Returned	Primary at 19,000 ft at 19.32 hrs.	F/O J Harris (P) Sgt G H Simpkins (F/Eng) F/Sgt J W Eppel (Nav) W/O J C Conway (A/B) F/Sgt R G Bickford (W/Op) Sgt W P Waddell (MU/AG) Sgt B S P Barby (R/AG)
NG250	Returned	Primary at 19,000 ft at 19.59 hrs. Landed at Manston. F/Eng hit by flak - compound fracture of left leg. A/G Got AO (???) [unreadable]	F/L V B Ansell (P) Sgt G P Sythes (F/Eng) Sgt T D Rodgers (Nav) Sgt L Trudgian (A/B) F/Sgt H A Elderfield (W/Op) P/O GJ Horsfall (MU/AG) Sgt S J H Adams (R/AG)
NG246	Returned	Primary at 18,000 ft at 19.32 hrs.
PD320	Returned	Primary at 18,000 ft at 19.37 1/2 hrs.
NG251	Returned	Primary at 18,000 ft at 19.40 hrs.
PD382	Returned	Primary at 16,000 ft at 19.45 hrs.
PB562	Returned	Primary at 19,000 ft at 19.32 1/2 hrs.	F/O L J T McCarthy (P) Sgt J D Shilcock (F/Eng) Sgt T W Farmer (Nav) F/Sgt F L J Colbourn (A/B) Sgt S J Lovett (W/Op) Sgt L Kendrew (MU/AG) F/O F M Kennedy (R/AG)
PB592	Returned	Primary at 19,000 ft at 19.36 hrs.
LM273	Returned	Primary at 17,500 ft at 19.47 hrs.	F/O W H Tolman (P) F/Sgt F R Lecourt (F/Eng) F/Sgt J G Lawrence (Nav) F/O R Deakin (A/B) F/Sgt L A Aitken (W/Op) Sgt T Taylor (MU/AG) Sgt T E Vaughan (R/AG)
PD313	Returned	Primary at 19,000 ft at 19.36 1/2 hrs.
PD221	Returned	Primary at 16,000 ft at 19.37 hrs.
ME301	Returned	Primary at 17,000 ft at 19.38 hrs.	F/Lt G N Young (P) Sgt D A Driver (F/Eng) Sgt E A Wills (Nav) Sgt K Thornley (A/B) Sgt J H Taylor (W/Op) Sgt J F Donald (MU/AG) Sgt F V Steele (R/AG)
ND972	Returned	Primary at 17,500 ft at 19.42 hrs.
PA995	Returned	Primary at 18,000 ft at 19.44 hrs.	F/O G E Blackler (P) Sgt W R Ross (F/Eng) F/Sgt H P Nichols (Nav) F/Sgt J W Bold (A/B) F/Sgt E Mozley (W/Op) Sgt J Nicholson (MU/AG) Sgt M McCutcheon (R/AG)
NF931	Returned	Primary at 16,200 ft at 19.44 1/2 hrs.
NF932	Returned	Primary at 18,000 ft at 19.46 1/2 hrs.	F/O K A Whynacht (P) Sgt R J Piper (F/Eng) Sgt K A Vardigans (Nav) F/O M C Helman (A/B) Sgt H Smith (W/Op) Sgt A A Pattison (MU/AG) Sgt - Hutchings (R/AG)
ME776	Returned	Primary at 17,000 ft at 19.45 hrs.
NG120	Returned	Primary at 17,000 ft at 19.36 hrs.	F/L M F A Maltin (P) Sgt G N Raynes (F/Eng) F/O J D Nelson (Nav) W/O G B McGhee (A/B) Sgt G King (W/Op) Sgt V Montague (MU/AG) Sgt R C Dyke (R/AG)
NG132	Returned	Abortive - Rear turret u/s
NG138	Returned	Primary at 18,000 ft at 19.39 hrs.
LM228	Returned	ABortive - Landed Woodbridge - Hydraulics u/s
LM182	Returned	Primary at 16200 ft at 19.35 1/2 hrs.	F/O G S Devereau (P) Sgt S H Ward (F/Eng) Sgt C W Cross (Nav) Sgt C A P Noble (A/B) F/Sgt W Horlor (W/Op) Sgt G E Mills (MU/AG) Sgt J R McNamara (R/AG)
PB707	Returned	Primary at 16,000 ft at 19.40 hrs. [Ed: ORB states "PB707/g "L2""]	F/O G H Markes (P) Sgt K J Brotherhood (F/Eng) F/Sgt F W L Mann (Nav) Sgt V T Wilkes (A/B) Sgt F N M Petch (W/Op) Sgt L G Buckell (MU/AG) Sgt D J Driscoll (R/AG)
NG243	Returned	Primary at 17,000 ft at 19.49 hrs.	W/O J Groves (P) Sgt S B Faggetter (F/Eng) Sgt D M Buchanan (Nav) Sgt J D Fellows (A/B) W/O G Aylmore (W/Op) Sgt A J Johns (MU/AG) Sgt C R Donoghue (R/AG)

Summary Statistics

Based on the data in the lists displayed above, and keeping in mind that data is still being updated and thus not yet complete, the following statistics are generated:

Aircraft Deployment Statistics

Aircraft deployments	26
MAX Aircraft deployed in single operation	26 (Bochum, 04 Nov 1944)

These details were last updated: 24 November 2024

Note

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