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| Date: | Tuesday 31 August 1943 |
| Time: | 03:18 |
| Type: |  Short Stirling Mk III |
| Owner/operator: | 149 (East India) Sqn RAF |
| Registration: | EF438 |
| MSN: | OJ-D |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 7 / Occupants: 7 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | 4 km west of Mönchengladbach, Nordrhein-Westfalen -
 Germany
|
| Phase: | Combat |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | RAF Lakenheath |
Takeoff at 00:19 hrs (local time) for an operation against München-Gladbach.
Shot down by the crew of Hauptmann Hans-Dieter Frank & Feldwebel Erich Gotter of the Stab I./NJG 1, flying Heinkel He 219 V12 from Venlo airfield, the Netherlands.
Crew:-
Pilot : Flight Sergeant Ernest William Bower RAFVR 1318945 [Killed]
Flight Engineer : Sergeant John Gordon Golden RAFVR 1604513 [Killed]
Navigator : Sergeant Lester Jack Duncan Bristow RAFVR 1393357 [Killed]
Bomb Aimer : Lieutenant (Army) H A Deviney USAAF [Killed]
Wireless Operator / Air Gunner : Sergeant Phillip Owen Fletcher RAFVR 1269967 [Killed]
Mid-Upper Gunner : Sergeant Thomas Cornelius Cassidy RAFVR 1558450 [Killed]
Rear Gunner : Sergeant John Collins RAFVR 1518242 [Killed]
All lie at the Rheinberg War Cemetery, Germany (51.529254 / 6.564161)
Sources:
Nachtjagd Combat Archive 1943 part two
http://www.aircrewremembered.com/AlliedLossesIncidents/?q=EF438
'The He 219' by R. Francis Ferguson page 106
Rob Davis Bomber Command Losses Database
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 27-Aug-2018 12:18 | TigerTimon | Added |
| 18-Oct-2018 13:36 | Nepa | Updated [Operator, Destination airport, Operator, ] |
| 22-Jun-2021 18:31 | TigerTimon | Updated [Source, Narrative, ] |
| 26-Jun-2021 12:13 | TigerTimon | Updated [Narrative, ] |
| 20-Aug-2024 09:19 | Rob Davis | Updated [Source, Narrative, ] |
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