Whymark, John Percy

Personal Information

Rank F/L
Forename(s) John Percy
Surname Whymark
Gender M
Age 25
Decorations DSO, DFC
Date of Death 04-10-1945
Next of Kin Husband of Eileen Whymark (married 1941, deceased 2014)
WHYMARK JP

Aircraft Information

Aircraft Avro Lancaster I
Serial Number PA278
Markings -F F-Freddie

Memorial Information

Burial/Memorial Country United Kingdom
Burial/Memorial Place Runnymede Memorial
Grave Reference Panel 266.
Epitaph
Ribbon Stone 0448 (Block 6, Column 5, Row 2)

IBCC Memorial Information

Phase 2
Panel Number 264

Enlistment Information

Service Number 53481
Service Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve
Group 1
Squadron 103
Trade Air Gunner
Country of Origin United Kingdom

Other Memorials

Location International Bomber Command Centre, Lincoln, Lincolnshire
Country United Kingdom
Memorial Type Inscribed stone tablet
Memorial Text F/L John P.Whymark DSO DFC AG 149 148 106 101 103 Sqns KIA 4 10 45
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Location Anglian Water Treatment Works, Elsham Wolds, Lincolnshire
Country United Kingdom
Memorial Type Inscribed Stone Pillar & Plaques
Memorial Text Pillar : RAF Elsham Wolds, 1941-1945, For those who made the great sacrifice. Plaque :This tree is dedicated to all those who served with 103 Squadron Royal Air Force. Plaque : RAF Elsham Wolds, Opened in Summer 1941 as a bomber station in No1 group, it w
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Miscellaneous Information

Enlisted in October 1938 as an aircraft mechanic (17 Squadron on Hurricanes). Remustered as an air gunner after the fall of France. His first tour was on Wellingtons split between RAF Mildenhall and North Africa/Malta. He completed 39 ops on this tour. His second tour was as mid-upper gunner on Lancasters with 101 Squadron at Ludford Magna. The last op of his second tour was on the night his son Robert was born. After a Gunnery Leader's course he volunteered for a third tour and was posted to RAF Elsham Wolds where he flew with many different crews, often problematic ones. Despite efforts by the AoC to ground him, he carried on flying until the end of the war and beyond, into Operation Dodge, his last operation. The crew picked up 17 ATS and 2 nurses from RAF Glatton/ Conington near Peterborough and flew into electrical storms around Marseilles where other crews saw the aircraft explode as it hit the sea. Completed at least 95 ops, although his logbook only showed 79 'official' sorties.
DSO citation: "Since the award of the D.F.C. in June, 1944, this officer has been employed as gunnery leader of his squadron. In this capacity he has done excellent work both in the air and on the ground. On his first tour this officer participated in attacks on Benghazi, Taranto and Tripoli. During this time his aircraft was involved in two serious crashes whilst returning to base after being damaged by enemy action. Fit. Lt. Whymark has also operated to Western Europe. His missions have included attacks on Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Chemnitz, Munich, Berlin and Essen. Fit Lt Whymark has at all times displayed skill and determination while on operations."
After the incident, several relatives of those involved placed adverts in the national newspapers appealing for any information on the event. One such advert was answered by Eileen Whymark, the widow of the F/L John Whymark. Her letter was passed to Warrant Officer Basil Henderson, the finecé of L/Cpl May Mann, who was also lost when PA278 crashed. The two of them then exchanged letters and when WO Henderson returned to UK in 1946 they met up and were subsequently married. They had two sons alongside Eileen’s first son (Robert) from her 1st marriage to F/L Whymark.

IBCC Digital Archive

Commonwealth War Graves Commission

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Last Operation Information

Start Date 04-10-1945
End Date 04-10-1945
Takeoff Station Glatton
Day/Night Raid Day
Operation Operation Dodge- transporting personnel to Italy
Reason for Loss Met with bad weather while flying at 2000' (since there was no heating or oxygen for the nurses on board) over Corsica . Radioed other aircraft to indicate F/L Taylor was turning back to Marseilles due to engine difficulties. Nothing further was heard and no wreckage was found during the subsequent air-sea rescue operation.
 
 
 
 

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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.