French, Raymond Alfred
Personal Information
Rank | F/O |
Forename(s) | Raymond Alfred |
Surname | French |
Gender | M |
Age | 25 |
Decorations | |
Date of Death | 14-02-1945 |
Next of Kin | Son of Walter A. French and Margaret Ellen French, of Kingsville, Ontario, Canada. |
Aircraft Information
Aircraft | Avro Lancaster III |
Serial Number | PB183 |
Markings | LQ-C |
Memorial Information
Burial/Memorial Country | Germany |
Burial/Memorial Place | Durnbach War Cemetery |
Grave Reference | 1. J. 2. |
Epitaph | 53 BOMBING MISSIONS. SOME DAY, BEYOND THE STARS, WE WILL MEET AGAIN. DAD |
IBCC Memorial Information
Phase | 2 |
Panel Number | 167 |
Enlistment Information
Service Number | J/19042 |
Service | Royal Canadian Air Force |
Group | 8 |
Squadron | 405 (Vancouver) |
Trade | Air Gunner |
Country of Origin | Canada |
Other Memorials
Location | Adjacent to Village Windmill, Mill Rd, Great Gransden, Cambridgeshire |
Country | United Kingdom |
Memorial Type | Memorial Stone with inscribed Metal Plaque |
Memorial Text | Remembering 405 (Vancouver) Sqn. PFF at Gransden Lodge 1942 - 1945 |
Location | St. Bartholomew's Church, Great Gransden, Cambridgeshire |
Country | United Kingdom |
Memorial Type | Stained Glass Window, RoH and inscribed metal plaque |
Memorial Text | Commemorating the 801 airmen of 405 Sqn. RCAF who gave their lives 1941 - 1945 |
Location | Pocklington Gliding Club, Pocklington Airfield, East Yorkshire |
Country | United Kingdom |
Memorial Type | Marble Pillar and inscribed metal plaque |
Memorial Text | In memory of 102 (Ceylon) and 405 (Vancouver) Sqns. Pocklington Airfield |
Commonwealth War Graves Commission
The National Archives
Record of Events (Operational Record Book) AIR 27/1790/4 |
Summary of Events (Operational Record Book) AIR 27/1790/3 |
Fellow Servicemen
Last Operation Information
Start Date | 13-02-1945 |
End Date | 14-02-1945 |
Takeoff Station | Gransden Lodge |
Day/Night Raid | Night (2% moon) |
Operation | Dresden- Operation Thunderclap. Undoubtedly the most controversial raid of the entire war, this was, on the face of it at least, an ordinary attack for Bomber Command at this point in the war. 805 aircraft in two waves, 3 hours apart with the second wave causing a firestorm. The true death toll is unknown but is believed to be in excess of 50000. 9 aircraft were lost. The American 8th Air Force also bombed the following day and again the day after, concluding their attack on 2nd March. It was, however, the first attack by the RAF which inflicted most of the damage. |
Reason for Loss |