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French, Edward George Owen

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Personal Information

Rank Sgt
Forename(s) Edward George Owen
Surname French
Gender M
Decorations DFM
Date of Death 06-09-1943
FRENCH EGO

Aircraft Information

Aircraft Handley Page Halifax II
Serial Number JB839
Markings KN-K

Memorial Information

Burial/Memorial Country Germany
Burial/Memorial Place Durnbach War Cemetery
Grave Reference 6. D. 20.
Epitaph

IBCC Memorial Information

Phase 2
Panel Number 167

Enlistment Information

Service Number 1332367
Service Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve
Group 4
Squadron 77
Squadron Motto Esse potius quam videri (To be, rather than to seem)
Trade WOp/AG
Country of Origin United Kingdom

Other Memorials

Location Holy Trinity Church, Elvington, North Yorkshire
Country United Kingdom
Memorial Type Stained Glass Window & Roll of Honour
Memorial Text Memorial windows and Roll of Honour for 77 Sqn. R.A.F.
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Location Yorkshire Air Museum, Elvington North Yorkshire
Country United Kingdom
Memorial Type Marble Column with Metal Sculpture and Plaques
Memorial Text Memorial to 77 Sqn. R.A.F. City of Lancaster's own
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Miscellaneous Information

CGM Citation, London Gazette, 16 July 1943: One night in June 1943 (22nd), Sergeants French and Spedie [sic] were the wireless operator/air gunner and rear gunner respectively of an aircraft (77 Squadron Halifax II JD110) piloted by Flight Sergeant Mathers which attacked Mulheim. Whilst over the target area, the bomber was subjected to heavy fire from the ground defences and was repeatedly hit. Two engines were rendered unserviceable in quick succession, while the starboard aileron control was shot away and three petrol tanks were pierced, all of which leaked rapidly. In spite of this, flight Sergeant Mathers flew clear of the defences and set course for this country. On the return flight, the bomber gradually lost height and all moveable equipment, including the guns of the mid-upper turret and some ammunition were jettisoned. Shortly after crossing the enemy coast, the disabled aircraft was intercepted by an enemy fighter. In the ensuing engagement, Sergeant Spedie [sic] skilfully used his guns and, eventually with a devastating burst from close range, he shot the attacker down into the sea. The bomber was down to 500 feet, but displaying superb airmanship, Flight Sergeant Mathers, receiving much assistance from Sergeant French who diligently worked his wireless apparatus to obtain direction fixes, struggled on to reach an airfield near the coast. Although the undercarriage could not be lowered, this pilot successfully effected a crash-landing. In most harassing circumstances, Flight Sergeant Mathers displayed exceptional skill, courage and fortitude, while Sergeants French and Spedie [sic] displayed conduct worthy of the highest priase.

Commonwealth War Graves Commission

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The National Archives

Record of Events (Operational Record Book) AIR 27/656/37
Summary of Events (Operational Record Book) AIR 27/656/36

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.

Adams K A (Sgt)
Goldsbrough W (F/S)
Gough R (Sgt)
Mathers F E (P/O)
Muffett G A (Sgt)
Simpson W R (F/O)
Speedie W F (F/S)

Last Operation Information

Start Date 05-09-1943
End Date 06-09-1943
Takeoff Station Elvington
Day/Night Raid Night (34% moon)
Operation Mannheim/ Ludwigshafen. 605 aircraft, 34 losses (5.6%). Clear conditions- PFF marking plan worked perfectly. The main force approached from the west so that they could bomb Mannheim first and then move on to Ludwigshafen. Little creepback took place and much damage was caused to both targets. The normally detailed report from Mannheim was much less so, suggesting that the raid was so severe that the normal information gathering procedures has broken down amidst the destruction. Ludwigshafen described the raid simply as 'a catastrophe'. In the latter, 1080 dwellings, 6 military buildings and 4 industrial buildings were destroyed. The death toll was relatively low for such a large raid- 127- perhaps indicating that much of the city's population had been evacuated in the wake of the firestorm incident in Hamburg.
Reason for Loss Shot down by a Bf 110 night-fighter flown by Hptm. August Geiger of 7./NJG 1, and crashed near Oberhausen-Rheinhausen, 20km south of the target.

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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.