Date:	Saturday 17 June 1944
Time:	01:38 claim
Type:	Avro Lancaster Mk III
Owner/operator:	576 Sqn RAF
Registration:	PA997
MSN:	UL-D2
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 5 / Occupants: 7
Other fatalities:	0
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	Rhade, Dorsten, Nordrhein-Westfalen -   Germany
Phase:	Combat
Nature:	Military
Departure airport:	RAF Elsham Wolds
Destination airport:

Narrative:
Took off from RAF Elsham Wolds at 22:53 hrs for a bombing operation against the synthetic oil plant at Sterkrade/Holten in Nordrhein-Westfalen.

The aircraft was shot down by night fighter pilot Feldwebel Herbert Püchner of the 6./NJG 1, who had taken off from Deelen airfield (the Netherlands) at around 01:00 hrs in a Bf 110 G-4; crashed at Rhade, a town 9 km NNW from the centre of Dorsten, where those who died were first buried. It is likely that the Lancaster began to break up in the air as Flt Jefferson's body was found E of Dorsten at Hervest.

Crew:-
Pilot : Pilot Officer Alec Lenard Puttock RAFVR 175906 (NCO:919376 : Commission Gazetted Tuesday 20 June, 1944) [Killed]
Flight Engineer : Flight Sergeant L R S Templeton RAF 1099268 [PoW]
Navigator : Flight Sergeant Thomas Jefferson RAFVR 1482478 [Killed]
Bomb Aimer : Flight Sergeant John Brown RAFVR 1575151 [Killed]
Wireless Operator : Flight Sergeant D W G Warr RAF 1314538 [PoW]
Mid-Upper Gunner : Flight Sergeant Herbert Edgar Lillicrap RAFVR 1894974 [Killed]
Rear Gunner : Flight Sergeant Charles Philp RAFVR 1822774 [Killed]

All lie at the Reichswald Forest War Cemetery, Germany (51.740880 / 6.082017)

Air-Britain Royal Air Force Aircraft PA100-RZ999
Royal Air Force Bomber Command Losses of the Second World 1944 Page 288.
https://www.facebook.com/hottonwarcemetery/photos/?tab=album&album_id=710573339043307
http://scarletboy44.tumblr.com/post/53200990008/remember-pilot-officer-alec-stevens-served-as
Nachtjagd Combat Archive 1944 part three
http://www.aircrewremembered.com/AlliedLossesIncidents/?q=PA997
Google Maps
Rob Davis Bomber Command Losses Database http://robdavistelford.co.uk/webspace/raf_bc

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
25-Aug-2013 10:55	JINX	Added
30-Dec-2014 23:44	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Operator, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Other fatalities, Location, Country, Departure airport, Narrative, ]
06-Jun-2015 10:02	Cliford	Updated [Operator, ]
18-Jun-2016 18:54	Red Dragon	Updated [Cn, Operator, Total fatalities, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, ]
07-Nov-2018 19:04	Nepa	Updated [Operator, Destination airport, Operator, ]
09-Oct-2020 10:51	TigerTimon	Updated [Time, Other fatalities, Location, Phase, Source, Narrative, ]
09-Oct-2020 10:58	TigerTimon	Updated [Narrative, ]
02-Mar-2025 13:47	Rob Davis	Updated [Source, Narrative, ]