Lewis, Gerald Edwin
Personal Information
Rank | F/S |
Forename(s) | Gerald Edwin |
Surname | Lewis |
Gender | M |
Age | 20 |
Decorations | |
Date of Death | 15-10-1942 |
Next of Kin | Son of Jacob Lewis and Tillie Lewis (née Michaels), of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. |
Aircraft Information
Aircraft | Handley Page Halifax II |
Serial Number | W7854 |
Markings | LQ-T |
Memorial Information
Burial/Memorial Country | Belgium |
Burial/Memorial Place | Brussels Town Cemetery |
Grave Reference | X. 16. 11. |
Epitaph |
IBCC Memorial Information
Phase | 2 |
Panel Number | 198 |
Enlistment Information
Service Number | R/85962 |
Service | Royal Canadian Air Force |
Group | 4 |
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
Gerald was born at Toronto, Ontario on 21 April 1922. His father worked as a mechanic and was born in Toronto and his mother was born in New York, USA. He attended Allenby Public School 1934-1937 followed by Northern Vocational 1937-1939 (drafting and motor mechanics). The sports he took part in were track and field, and occasionally baseball . His hobby was mechanics. During 1939-1940 he worked as a clerk for J. Lewis and then enlisted on 27 December 1940. |
After training Gerald was posted to the U.K. and embarked from Canada on 13 December 1941 arriving at 3PRC on 26 December 1941. He was then at 1 AGS 7 March 1942, 7 AGS 29 April 1942, 22 OTU 9 June 1942 and finally at 405 Squadron on 9 October 1942. Very sadly this young man was to lose his life less than one week later, on 15 October 1942. |
Commonwealth War Graves Commission
The National Archives
Record of Events (Operational Record Book) AIR 27/1787/34 |
Summary of Events (Operational Record Book) AIR 27/1787/33 |
Fellow Servicemen
Last Operation Information
Start Date | 15-10-1942 |
End Date | 16-10-1942 |
Takeoff Station | Topcliffe |
Day/Night Raid | Night (39% moon) |
Operation | Cologne. 289 aircraft, 18 losses (6.2%). PFF had difficulty in identifying the target and as a result were unable to draw the main force from a decoy fire. |
Reason for Loss | Shot down by a night-fighter and crashed at Waterloo, SSE of Brussels, Belgium |