Thirkettle, Ernest Albert Cecil

Personal Information

Rank Sgt
Forename(s) Ernest Albert Cecil
Surname Thirkettle
Gender M
Date of Death 04-09-1943
THIRKETTLE EAC

Aircraft Information

Aircraft Avro Lancaster III
Serial Number EE138
Markings AR-E2 E-Easy

Memorial Information

Burial/Memorial Country United Kingdom
Burial/Memorial Place Runnymede Memorial
Grave Reference Panel 166.
Epitaph

IBCC Memorial Information

Phase 1
Panel Number 106

Enlistment Information

Service Number 1217817
Service Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve
Group 1
Squadron 460 (Australian)
Squadron Motto Strike and return
Trade Air Gunner
Country of Origin United Kingdom

Other Memorials

Location Rural location nr Stadil, Stadil, Midtjylland Provincer
Country Denmark
Memorial Type Propeller blade, inscribed memorial stone and inscribed metal plaques
Memorial Text
Translation "A memorial to the crew of Lancaster EE138 of 460 Sqn RAAF, shot down on 4/9/43"
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Location Adjacent to Clubhouse, Breighton Airfield, East Yorkshire
Country United Kingdom
Memorial Type Inscribed Marble Tablet
Memorial Text A memorial to those who served at Breighton during WW2, including 460 Sqn RAAF
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Location Junction of Kirmond Rd (B1203) & Orford Rd, Binbrook, Lincolnshire
Country United Kingdom
Memorial Type Inscribed Stone Memorial
Memorial Text A memorial to 460 Sqn RAAF which operated from Breighton and Binbrook 1941-1945
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Location Church of St. Mary & St. Gabriel, Binbrook, Lincolnshire
Country United Kingdom
Memorial Type Stained Glass Window, RoH and Sqn Badge
Memorial Text Memorial to 460 Sqn RAAF which served at Binbrook between 1941 and 1945
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Location Former ATC Signals Square, Brookenby Industrial Estate, Lincolnshire
Country United Kingdom
Memorial Type Inscribed Metal Plaques
Memorial Text Memorials to the aircrew and groundcrew of 460 Sqn RAAF who served at Brookenby, 1942-1943
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Location Church of St. Michael & All Angels, Brookenby, Lincolnshire
Country United Kingdom
Memorial Type Inscribed Metal Plaques
Memorial Text Memorials to the aircrew and groundcrew of 460 Sqn RAAF who served at Brookenby, 1942-1943
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Miscellaneous Information

A memorial was unveiled at the crash site exactly 70 years after the event, on 4th September 2013. It features a recovered propeller blade from EE138.

Commonwealth War Graves Commission

The National Archives

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.

Last Operation Information

Start Date 03-09-1943
End Date 04-09-1943
Takeoff Station Binbrook
Day/Night Raid Night (16% moon)
Operation Berlin
Reason for Loss On the return leg, attacked by a German JU88 night fighter piloted by Leutnant Rechberger of 12./NJG 3. The Lancaster caught fire and at approximately 02:40 it crashed in a marshy field near Stadil, Denmark belonging to Ingeman Halkjær and exploded. Ingeman Halkjær together with a German soldier found some remains immediately following the crash and the Wehrmacht laid them to rest at the edge of the field. After the war the remains were recovered and re-interred in Svinø cemetary as an unknown airman.
 
 
 
 

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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.