Gartland, John Aloysius
Personal Information
Rank | Sgt |
Forename(s) | John Aloysius |
Surname | Gartland |
Gender | M |
Age | 20 |
Date of Death | 22-11-1943 |
Next of Kin | Son of Thomas and Christina Gartland, of Glasgow. |
Aircraft Information
Aircraft | Short Stirling III |
Serial Number | EF180 |
Markings | HA-D |
Memorial Information
Burial/Memorial Country | United Kingdom |
Burial/Memorial Place | Runnymede Memorial |
Grave Reference | Panel 150. |
Epitaph |
IBCC Memorial Information
Phase | 2 |
Panel Number | 168 |
Enlistment Information
Service Number | 1568245 |
Service | Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve |
Group | 3 |
Squadron | 218 (Gold Coast) |
Squadron Motto | In time |
Trade | Flight Engineer |
Country of Origin | United Kingdom |
Other Memorials
Location | St. Mary's Church, Bexwell, Norfolk |
Country | United Kingdom |
Memorial Type | Inscribed Stone Tablet |
Memorial Text | In memory of the squadrons based at R.A.F. Downham Market and those who have their lives during the 1939 - 1945 war |
Location | All Saints Church, Chedburgh, Suffolk |
Country | United Kingdom |
Memorial Type | RoH and Sqn Crest |
Memorial Text | Roll of Honour and scroll remembering the members of the Royal and Polish Air Forces who served at RAF Chedburgh 1942 - 1946 |
Commonwealth War Graves Commission
The National Archives
Record of Events (Operational Record Book) AIR 27/1351/22 |
Summary of Events (Operational Record Book) AIR 27/1351/21 |
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 | 22-11-1943 |
End Date | 23-11-1943 |
Takeoff Station | Downham Market |
Day/Night Raid | Night (22% moon) |
Operation | Berlin. 764 aircraft- the largest raid on Berlin so far and the last to include Stirlings which had not fared well in recent raids on the city. Bad weather again kept the night-fighters at bay and as a result 26 aircraft were Lost (3.4%). The target was completely cloud-covered but despite the weather, this was the most successful raid on Berlin of the war. An unseasonably dry spell led to several firestorms and there was an immense area of destruction. At least 3000 houses were destroyed along with 23 industrial premises. 175000 people were bombed out and the list of municipal buildings damaged or destroyed is too long to include. The famous Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church was hit this night- it is a famous landmark in Berlin to this day because it was deliberately only part-restored. Five Siemens factories and the Alkett tank works were destroyed, the latter having been moved to Berlin from the Ruhr after its destruction earlier in the conflict. |
Reason for Loss | Crashed in the target area |