| Aircraft | Short Stirling III |
| Serial Number | EH944 |
| Markings | WP-A |
| Burial/Memorial Country | Germany |
| Burial/Memorial Place | Hanover War Cemetery |
| Grave Reference | 16. H. 9.. |
| Epitaph |
| Phase | 2 |
| Panel Number | 153 |
| Service Number | 1312886 |
| Service | Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve |
| Group | 3 |
| Squadron | 90 |
| Trade | WOp |
| Country of origin if different | United Kingdom |
| Morgan W A (Sgt) |
| Start Date | 22-09-1943 |
| End Date | 23-09-1943 |
| Takeoff Station | Wratting Common |
| Day/Night raid | |
| Operation | Hanover- the first of four large raids. 711 aircraft, 26 losses (3.7%). Five American B-17s also took part. Visibility was good but strong winds hampered the marking efforts and consequently the bombing by the main force. No local report is available but it is unlikely that significant damage was caused. |
| Reason for Loss | Attacked by a Ju.88 over the target and immediately caught fire. The rear gunner, Sgt. W. A. Morgan, was killed. The pilot, W/O R. F. Denton, suffered severe leg injuries, the navigator, Sgt. R. W. Suddens, was injured in one hand by shrapnel, and Sgt. O. N. Jones, the flight engineer, received minor injuries. Two of the engines failed and the pilot ordered the two uninjured crew members, the bomb-aimer, 1231049 Sgt. John William Purcell, and wireless operator, 1312886 Sgt. George William Davies, to bail out. As the pilot could not operate the rudder pedals unaided, Sgt. Jones helped him while at the same time struggling to maintain power on the two serviceable engines. By the time the English coast was first sighted, fuel was running low and the three men, badly fatigued, realised that the most difficult job, landing safely, was yet to come. Most of the electrical system had failed, the radio was out of action, and the landing gear could not be lowered except by hand, an impossible task in the circumstances. Soon the lights of Wratting Common's runway were spotted, but, being unable to make contact with the aircraft, the airfield controller suspected a German intruder and switched the lights off. The fuel gauges told the three crew members that they had very little time left and they began looking for a more hospitable airfield. A few minutes later they saw one and made a straight-in approach to a successful crash landing. Only after they were rescued from the crippled aircraft did they discover that they were at RAF Lakenheath. Sadly, William Davies did not survive the parachute drop and is buried in Hanover War Cemetery. Sgt. Purcell was incarcerated in Stalag Luft VI with PoW number 652. |