Bell, Ronald
Personal Information
Rank | Sgt |
Forename(s) | Ronald |
Surname | Bell |
Gender | M |
Age | 22 |
Decorations | |
Date of Death | 24-05-1943 |
Next of Kin | Son of Bernard and Hilda Bell, of Otley, Yorkshire. Husband of Marguerite Bell, of Otley. |
Aircraft Information
Aircraft | Short Stirling III |
Serial Number | BK783 |
Markings | AA-Q |
Memorial Information
Burial/Memorial Country | Netherlands |
Burial/Memorial Place | Beesd General Cemetery |
Grave Reference | Coll. grave 1-2. |
Epitaph | AT THE GOING DOWN OF THE SUN AND IN THE MORNING WE WILL REMEMBER THEM |
IBCC Memorial Information
Phase | 2 |
Panel Number | 129 |
Enlistment Information
Service Number | 1077692 |
Service | Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve |
Group | 3 |
Squadron | 75 (NZ) |
Trade | WOp/AG |
Country of Origin | United Kingdom |
Other Memorials
Location | Village Centre, Mepal, Cambridgeshire |
Country | United Kingdom |
Memorial Type | Inscribed Stone Memorial & Inscribed Metal Plaque |
Memorial Text | A stone memorial, donated by former members of 75 (NZ) Sqn RAF stationed at Mepal between 1943 and 1945 |
Location | St. Andrews Church, Sutton, Cambridgeshire |
Country | United Kingdom |
Memorial Type | Roll of Honour in Wooden Case with brass plaque |
Memorial Text | Roll of Honour. Plaque, Presented by 75(NZ) Sqn Association - UK Branch in memory of Comrades named in the Roll of Honour |
Location | St. Marys Church, Feltwell, Norfolk |
Country | United Kingdom |
Memorial Type | Brick Piller and Marble Tablet |
Memorial Text | A memorial to 75 (NZ) Sqn, RAF. Formed at RAF Feltwell in April 1940 and flew from there until June 1942. The Sqn number was presented to New Zealand becoming 75 Sqn RNZAF in October 1946 until its disbanding in December 2001. |
Location | Newmarket Racecourse, Newmarket, Suffolk |
Country | United Kingdom |
Memorial Type | Inscribed Marble Tablet |
Memorial Text | Remembering No 75 (New Zealand) Sqn, No 3 Gp Bomber Command. RAF Newmarket Heath, November 1942 - June 1943 |
Commonwealth War Graves Commission
The National Archives
Record of Events (Operational Record Book) AIR 27/646/34 |
Summary of Events (Operational Record Book) AIR 27/646/33 |
Fellow Servicemen
Last Operation Information
Start Date | 23-05-1943 |
End Date | 24-05-1943 |
Takeoff Station | Newmarket |
Day/Night Raid | Night (78% moon) |
Operation | Dortmund. 826 aircraft- the largest since the 1000 bomber raids. 38 aircraft Lost (4.6%). PFF met with clear conditions and marked the target accurately, leading to a good raid. Much devastation was wreaked across large parts of the city. In particular the Hoesch steelworks were put out of action. 624 were killed. This was the last sizeable raid on Dortmund for exactly one year. |
Reason for Loss | Shot down by a night-fighter and crashed SSW of Culemborg, Holland |