Jennings, Roland Warren
Personal Information
Rank | F/S |
Forename(s) | Roland Warren |
Surname | Jennings |
Gender | M |
Age | 20 |
Decorations | |
Date of Death | 24-05-1943 |
Next of Kin | Son of Alfred Jennings and Blanche Jennings (née Rutherford), of Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada. |
Aircraft Information
Aircraft | Handley Page Halifax II |
Serial Number | JB896 |
Markings | LQ-C |
Memorial Information
Burial/Memorial Country | United Kingdom |
Burial/Memorial Place | Runnymede Memorial |
Grave Reference | Panel 182. |
Epitaph |
IBCC Memorial Information
Phase | 2 |
Panel Number | 189 |
Enlistment Information
Service Number | R/124657 |
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 |
Miscellaneous Information
Roland was born on 2 April 1923 at Sydney, Nova Scotia. His father was born in Newfoundland and his mother in Londonderry, Nova Scotia. His father, a steel worker, died in 1934. He came from a large family of fourteen children. His brothers were: James, William, Edward, Francis, Frederick and Sydney. He also had seven sisters, one of whom, Lila, had died in 1910 aged just two years. He attended Ashby school 1930-1939 and then Sydney Academy between 1939-1941 (both schools in Sydney). The sports he took part in were swimming, rugby, baseball, hockey and basketball and his hobby was making model aeroplanes. Because Roland was still a student he had no work experience and enlisted on 25 August 1941. |
After training, he embarked for the U.K. on 25 September 1942, arriving at 3PRC on 9 October 1942. He then went on to 22 OTU 27 October 1942, 1659 CU. 20 February 1943 and 405 Squadron on 23 March 1943. Sadly, this young man was to lose his life two months later on 24 May 1943. |
Commonwealth War Graves Commission
The National Archives
Record of Events (Operational Record Book) AIR 27/1788/10 |
Summary of Events (Operational Record Book) AIR 27/1788/9 |
Fellow Servicemen
Last Operation Information
Start Date | 23-05-1943 |
End Date | 24-05-1943 |
Takeoff Station | Gransden Lodge |
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 | Lost without trace |