Laurence, Joseph Fernand Rolland Died

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Personal Information

Rank F/S
Forename(s) Joseph Fernand Rolland
Surname Laurence
Gender M
Age 21
Date of Death 26-05-1943
Next of Kin Son of Donat Laurence and Aline Laurence (nee Giguere), of Montreal, Province of Québec, Canada.
LAURENCE JFR

Aircraft Information

Aircraft Handley Page Halifax II
Serial Number JB837
Markings KN-D

Memorial Information

Burial/Memorial Country Germany
Burial/Memorial Place Rheinberg War Cemetery
Grave Reference Coll. grave 4. D. 5-20.

IBCC Memorial Information

Map
Directions to panel 196
LAURENCE JFR

Location

Row -
Panel 196
Column -
Line -

Directions From the Chadwick Centre, take the central path towards The Spire.

Phase 2
Panel Number 196

Enlistment Information

Service Number R/104713
Service Royal Canadian Air Force
Group 4
Squadron 77
Squadron Motto Esse potius quam videri (To be, rather than to seem)
Trade Air Gunner
Country of Origin Canada

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.
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
Location Yorkshire Air Museum, Elvington, North Yorkshire
Country United Kingdom
Memorial Type Memorial Gardens, Propeller, Inscribed Marble Tablets
Memorial Text In everlasting homage to the courage of those who have found their winged victory through the skies of Yorkshire
Location Yorkshire Air Museum, Elvington, North Yorkshire
Country United Kingdom
Memorial Type Propeller Unit & Inscribed Marble Tablets
Memorial Text They made the supreme sacrifice so that you & I may go in peace with freedom. 4 Group 1939 - 1945.
Location Heslington Hall, York, North Yorkshire
Country United Kingdom
Memorial Type Inscribed Metal Plaque
Memorial Text Heslington Hall 1941 - 1945, 4 Gp Headquarters Bomber Command. In remembrance of those Air & Ground personnel who made the supreme sacrifice that we all may walk in peace with freedom

Miscellaneous Information

Born 7 October 1921 Montreal, Canada.
Service History: 4 Manning Depot, Québec City, QC (9 Jun 41 to 15 Jul 41), Newfoundland Airport, Newfoundland (16 Jul 41 to 8 Sep 41), RCAF Detachment, North Sydney, NS (9 Sep 41 to 16 Jul 42), 9 Bombing and Gunnery School, Mont Joli, QC (17 Jul 42 to 10 Oct 42), 3 Training Command, Montreal, QC (11 Oct 42 to 1 Nov 42), 1 "Y" Depot, Halifax, NS (22 Nov 42 to 22 Nov 42) RAF Trainee Pool (22 Nov 42 to Unknown). Arrived UK 31 Nov 42, 3 Personnel Reception Centre (31 Nov 42 to 2 Feb 43), 24 Operational Training Unit (2 Feb 43 to 12 Apr 43), RAF Driffield (14 Apr 43 to 15 Apr 43), 1163 Conversion Unit (15 Apr 43 to 23 Apr 43), RAF Driffield (23 Apr 43 to 16 May 43), arriving at 77 Sqn on 16 May 43.

The National Archives

Record of Events (Operational Record Book) AIR 27/656/29
Summary of Events (Operational Record Book) AIR 27/656/29

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.

Name Outcome
Codd W R L (Sgt) Died
Kershaw J (Sgt) Died
Lewis R (Sgt) Died
MacFarlane D W (F/S) Died
Richardson J W (Sgt) Died
Waterston J H (Sgt) Died

Last Operation Information

Start Date 25-05-1943
End Date 26-05-1943
Takeoff Station Elvington
Day/Night Raid Night (57% moon)
Operation Dusseldorf. 759 aircraft, 27 losses (3.6%). This raid was a failure since PFF had great difficulty in marking the target due to two layers of cloud. Decoy fires and markers were also being operated. Bombing was scattered as a result.
Reason for Aircraft Loss Shot down by a night-fighter and exploded with such force that two Stirlings (EF361 and BF534) were also downed. Crashed close to Jülich, Germany
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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.