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WALKER C 551
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WALKER, Colin

Aircraft Information
Aircraft Handley Page Halifax V
Serial Number LL185
Markings MP-G
Memorial information
Burial/Memorial Country United Kingdom
Burial/Memorial Place Runnymede Memorial
Grave Reference Panel 239..
Epitaph
IBCC Memorial Information
Phase 2
Panel Number 258
Enlistment information
Service Number 573551
Service Royal Air Force
Group 4
Squadron 76
Trade Pilot
Country of origin if different United Kingdom
Last Operation information
Start Date 21-01-1944
End Date 22-01-1944
Takeoff Station Holme-on-Spalding-Moor
Day/Night raid Night
Operation Magdeburg- the first major raid on this target. 648 aircraft, 57 losses (8.8%). The Halifax loss rate was especially high at 15.6%. The German controller tracked the bomber stream across the North Sea and many night-fighters were already in the stream before it reached the German coast (using the newly developed Tame Boar methodology). The controller was slow in identifying Magdeburg as the target but this was of little consequence as the fighters were able to stay in the stream for the duration of the approach. Despite the high loss rate, this was not a successful attack. Stronger tail winds than anticipated placed some of the stream over the target before Zero Hour and dropped their bomb load anyway, making the target marking much less effective. German decoy markers exacerbated the situation. No local report is available but it is thought that most of the bombs fell outside of the city.
Reason for Loss Crashed into the sea off the Dutch coast