Date:	Tuesday 25 July 1944
Time:	night
Type:	Avro Lancaster Mk III
Owner/operator:	576 Sqn RAF
Registration:	PB265
MSN:	UL-V2
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 7
Other fatalities:	0
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	swamp at Carquebut, Manche département -   France
Phase:	Combat
Nature:	Military
Departure airport:	RAF Elsham Wolds
Destination airport:

Narrative:
Took off from RAF Elsham Wolds at 21:08 hrs for an operation against Stuttgart in Germany.

The Lanc was hit from below flying NW of Orléans at 9,500 ft (by Hauptmann Rauh of Stab II./NJG 4) at 00:17 hrs, and fell into a dive with its port wing and two engines damaged and on fire. One of the crew baled out, but the pilot, F/O Sarvis USAAF managed to regain control and the aircraft limped back to Normandy, only to be shot down by US ack-ack near Liesville (Manche).
Over Manche, abandoned by six of the crew, some of whom may have landed in the battle area, though all were eventually reported in safe hands. Fg Off Sarvis USAAF died. The wreckage of his aircraft was not discovered until 1989; he is buried in the US Military Cemetery Normandy, located near St-Laurent-sur-Mer:

Crew:-
Pilot : Flying Officer R C Sarvis USAAF [Killed]
Flight Engineer : Sergeant A Balfour RAF 1021030 [Evaded]
Navigator : Sergeant R T Gordon RCAF 181524 [Evaded]
Bomb Aimer : Sergeant J M Weir RAF
Wireless Operator : Sergeant Jack Coates RAFVR 1622241
Mid-Upper Gunner : Sergeant E Reed RAF
Rear Gunner : Sergeant T A Clark RCAF

Sergeant Coates was later killed in Lancaster NF975, 20th February 1945, still with 576 Squadron.

Air-Britain Royal Air Force Aircraft PA100-RZ999
Royal Air Force Bomber Command Losses of the Second World war 1944 Page 350.
http://www.aircrewremembered.com/sarvis-robert.html
http://lancasterpb265.blogspot.co.uk/2010_05_01_archive.html
http://francecrashes39-45.net/page_fiche_av.php?id=1421
Nachtjagd Combat Archive 1944 part four
Google Maps
Rob Davis Bomber Command Losses Database http://robdavistelford.co.uk/webspace/raf_bc

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
26-Aug-2013 08:16	JINX	Added
26-Aug-2013 08:17	JINX	Updated [Registration, ]
26-Jun-2016 21:49	Red Dragon	Updated [Cn, Operator, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Location, Country, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, ]
07-Nov-2018 19:01	Nepa	Updated [Operator, Destination airport, Operator, ]
07-Jun-2021 17:48	TigerTimon	Updated [Time, Location, Phase, Source, Narrative, ]
07-Jun-2021 17:50	TigerTimon	Updated [Narrative, ]
17-May-2025 06:47	Rob Davis	Updated [Source, Narrative, ]