Duffield, John Alvin Died

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Personal Information

Rank F/S
Forename(s) John Alvin
Surname Duffield
Gender M
Age 23
Date of Death 25-09-1942
Next of Kin Son of Charles Emms Duffield and Priscilla Latisha Duffield (née Russell), of Fort William, Ontario, Canada.
DUFFIELD JA

Aircraft Information

Aircraft Avro Lancaster l
Serial Number R5679
Markings QR-O

Memorial Information

Burial/Memorial Country Denmark
Burial/Memorial Place Frederikshavn Cemetery
Grave Reference Allied Plot. grave 32.

IBCC Memorial Information

Map
Directions to panel 30
DUFFIELD JA

Location

Row -
Panel 30
Column -
Line -

Directions From the Chadwick Centre, take the central path towards The Spire.

Phase 1
Panel Number 30

Enlistment Information

Service Number R/68670
Service Royal Canadian Air Force
Group 5
Squadron 61
Squadron Motto Per puram tonantes (Thundering through the clear air)
Trade Navigator
Country of Origin Canada

Other Memorials

Location Grønhøj Kro (Grønhøj Inn), Grønhøj Skivevej 26, 7470 Viborg, Midtjylland Provincer
Country Denmark
Memorial Type Inscribed memorial stone
Memorial Text Til ære for – in honour of RAF 25/9/1942, Lancaster R5679, 61 Squadron
Translation "In honour of the crew of of Lancaster R5679, 61 Squadron, 25/9/1942"
Location Zarken 19, Monnickendam, Noord-Holland Province
Country the Netherlands
Memorial Type Metal sculpture, propeller unit and inscribed marble tablets
Memorial Text Type Lancaster Neergestort 20 December 1942 Oudelandsdiikje – Lancaster R5697 of 106 Sqn
Translation "106 Sqn Lancaster R5697 crashed 20 December 1942 Oudelandsdiikje"
Location In front of the mess esplanade, Mailly-le-Camp, 10 - Aube Prefecture
Country France
Memorial Type Stone memorial sculpture, inscribed marble tablets and inscribed metal plaque
Memorial Text En souvenir des heros de la RAF. Qui ont participe au bombardment du camp de Mailly. Unites de la RAF engagees dans le raid sur Mailly-le-Camp, la nuit du 3 au 4 May 1944. N° 9-12-44-49-50-57 61-83-97-100-101 Special Duties Flight-103-105-106-166- 169-192-207-460 (RAAF)-463 (RAAF)-467 (RAAF)-550-576-617- 619-625-626-627-636
Translation "In memory of the RAF heroes who took part in the bombing of Mailly Camp. RAF units engaged in the raid on Mailly-le-Camp, the night of 3-4 May 1944. Squadrons that took part: N° 9-12-44-49-50-57 61-83-97-100-101 Special Duties Flight-103-105-106-166- 169-192-207-460 (RAAF)-463 (RAAF)-467 (RAAF)-550-576-617-619-625-626-627-636"
Location Lincoln County Hospital Chapel, Lincoln, Lincolnshire
Country United Kingdom
Memorial Type Inscribed Metal Plaque
Memorial Text In memory of Officers, NCO's & Other Ranks of 5 (Bomber) Group RAF who gave their lives Sept 1939 - May 1945

Miscellaneous Information

John was born on 6 June 1919 at Fort William. His father was born at Midland, Ontario and was a carpenter, and was deceased by the time of John's enlistment, and his mother was born at Vasey, Ontario. He had a two sisters- one was named Viola, and also one brother, William Walter. The schools he attended were Franklin School, 1925-1933 (Public), Collegiate Institute 1933-1938 Fort William, and Normal School, North Bay 1938-1939. He then spent the time until 1940 teaching at North Bay normal school. The sports he took part in were basketball, skiing, rowing and skating. He worked in the grain commission department of trade and commerce as an office clerk and grain sampler (seasonal work). He was also an office worker at Canada Car and Foundry as a Time Keeper during 1940 until enlistment.
John enlisted on 11 October 1940 and after initial training was posted to the U.K. He embarked from Canada on 9 December 1941 arriving at 3 PRC on 19 December and then went on to 2 AFU 2 January 1942, 16 OTU 9 April 1942, 61 Sqn on 11 July 1942, 61 CU 6 September and then 61 Squadron on 22 September 1942. Sadly John lost his life when his aircraft was shot down when returning from a gardening operation and all seven crew were killed 25 September 1942.

The National Archives

Record of Events (Operational Record Book) AIR 27/577/42
Summary of Events (Operational Record Book) AIR 27/577/42

Fellow Servicemen

Please note that this list gives all the losses aboard the quoted aircraft and occasionally these may have occurred on an earlier date when the aircraft was not itself lost. Please check the dates of death carefully.

Name Outcome
Bevan T R (Sgt) Died
Coldicott C N (Sgt) Died
Cormack A M (Sgt) Died
Dyson E (Sgt) Died
Emerslund W Y (F/S) Died
Morrison L W (Sgt) Died

Last Operation Information

Start Date 24-09-1942
End Date 25-09-1942
Takeoff Station Syerston
Day/Night Raid Night (100% moon)
Operation Mine laying duties in the Sweet Peas region.
Reason for Aircraft Loss Crashed 0200Hrs at Gronhoj, near Viborg, Denmark. Exploded on impact
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Casualty Pack

IBCC is delighted to introduce a unique facility to link the Losses Database to the relevant RAF Casualty Pack on the National Archives website. This project is the result of on-going collaboration between IBCC, the MOD Records Office and National Archives, Kew. This document describes what Casualty Packs are, when they were created, the process of making them available to the public and then goes on to describe the process by which you can view the contents of the packs. Casualty Packs (CPs) were created by the RAF whenever there was serious injury or loss of life associated with operational activity within the RAF. This includes operational flying losses, enemy action due to air raids, road accidents either on station or even off-station if they involved RAF vehicles. Deaths due to natural causes in service or accidents that did not involve RAF vehicles did not generally give rise to a CP.

CPs were originally given a unique reference number by the RAF. Each begins with the letter ‘P’ and is followed by six digits, then an oblique (forward slash) and the finally the year in which the incident took place- for example P396154/42.

The CPs are in the process of being made available to the general public as they are passed from the MOD Records Office, Portsmouth to National Archives, Kew. This process requires some rework to the files which is very time consuming, so the process of making them all available to National Archives will take several years. They are being made available in increasing date order.

Once CPs arrive at National Archives they are assigned a unique AIR81 number, so each CP has both a P-number and an AIR81 number. Both are searchable on the National Archives website under ‘Search the catalogue’ and both are included on the IBCC website.

The AIR81 reference on the IBCC website is a link to the file on the National Archives website. When you click on it, the relevant page will open in a new tab on your browser.

There is currently no plan to digitise AIR81 files, partly because they are fragile and partly because the information they contain can at times be sensitive, even harrowing, since they may contain exhumation reports and even photographs of corpses. Family members wishing to read the AIR81 files relating to their ancestors are advised to exercise caution and be guided by National Archives warnings where appropriate.

There are two means for accessing AIR81 files- to attend in person or to order a copy by post.

To attend in person, the attendee should first create a Reader’s Ticket. This can be done online by following this link: https://secure.nationalarchives.gov.uk/login/yourdetails. Then click on the AIR81 reference on the IBCC website and click Order in Advance. Enter your Reader’s Ticket number and state the date on which you intend to visit. National Archives will have the file ready for you when you arrive, saving you time. When you visit Kew, you must quote the Reader’s Ticket number and take along two forms of ID- one bearing your signature and one bearing your address. When you view the files, you are permitted to take photographs of each page, should you wish.

Alternatively, if you wish to order a copy by post, please be aware that there is a charge for this service based on the number of pages in the file. Click on the AIR81 reference on the IBCC website and then click Request a Copy. There is an £8.40 charge for National Archives staff to access the file and give you a quotation for the copying service. The process takes around 24 days to complete and can be expensive.

IBCC wishes to thank the staff at the MOD Records Office and National Archives for their engagement and assistance in making this facility available to our website users.