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Jeudwine, John Raymond Died

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Personal Information

Rank G/C
Forename(s) John Raymond
Surname Jeudwine
Gender M
Age 32
Decorations DSO, OBE, DFC, MiD
Date of Death 19-10-1945
Next of Kin Son of Wilfred Wynne Jeudwine, and of Mabel Gertrude Jeudwine, of Glinton, Northamptonshire.
JEUDWINE JR

Aircraft Information

Aircraft Hawker Typhoon IB
Serial Number JR390
Markings

Memorial Information

Burial/Memorial Country United Kingdom
Burial/Memorial Place Cambridge City Cemetery
Grave Reference Grave 15906.

IBCC Memorial Information

Phase SP
Panel Number 272 (not yet erected on site)

Enlistment Information

Service Number 33116
Service Royal Air Force
Squadron Little Staughton
Trade Pilot
Country of Origin United Kingdom

Other Memorials

Location Adjacent to former Airfield Site, Little Staughton, Bedfordshire
Country United Kingdom
Memorial Type Inscribed Stone Memorial
Memorial Text A memorial to RAF Little Staughton, including 109 Sqn
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Miscellaneous Information

DSO Citation: "Wing Commander Jeudwine has now completed a total of 67 operational sorties, of which 33 were carried out by daylight in the Far and Middle East. He has done 14 sorties since he was recommended for his last award. Since the beginning of May 1944, he has been employed as a Group Controller (Master Bomber), in which capacity he has carried out twelve sorties including the attack against Brunswick on 22/23 May 1944. This role necessitated his remaining in the immediate vicinity of the target at low altitudes for very long periods, thus exposing himself unduly to the enemy ground air defences. It is worthy of note that his last two sorties were undertaken whilst he was employed as Air Staff Officer at this Headquarters - a Staff appointment which normally does not place any obligation on the holder to participate in operational flying. Moreover on both these occasions he flew in a type of aircraft new to this Group and to himself, i.e. the Lightning, single-seater, which calls for the most accurate D.R. navigation. It is difficult to single out any particular mission or special commendation. On all of them he has displayed a keen relish for operations, an unusual determination to complete his allotted task successfully, and exceptional gallantry. On many occasions he had to contend with heavy anti-aircraft fire and potential attacks from enemy fighters, but these did not deter him from remaining in the target area until his job was done. Two typical examples were the attacks against the ammunition depot at Salbris (7/8 May 1944) and the river bridges at Caen (12/13 June 1944). The first attack was carried out under conditions of full moon and in the face of strong enemy fighter opposition. Nevertheless, Wing Commander Jeudwine remained in the target area for over 30 minutes, and whilst on his own bombing run was twice attacked by a Dornier 217. Displaying his customary fortitude he completed his bombing run and then proceeded to adopt such efective combat manoeuvres as to render the enemy’s fire nugatory. On the second occasion he was flying in a Mosquito, and on reaching the target area his port engine was hit by anti-aircraft fire and put out of action. Notwithstanding the act that he was then at a height of only 1,000 feet and in the midst of a very "hot" anti-aircraft area, he postponed his return to Base until he had handed over control to his Deputy and had satisfied himself that the attack was progressing smoothly. For his outstanding operational record, and his exceptional conduct, particularly during the past three months, this gallant officer is strongly recommended for the immediate award of the Distinguished Service Order." On 5 August 1944, Air Vice-Marshal Sir Ralph Cochrane, Air Officer Commanding, No.5 Group, added his remarks: "Wing Commander Jeudwine first commanded No.619 Squadron in this Group and during his period of command raised the squadron to a very high standard of operational efficiency. He was then selected to fill one of the new appointments of Group Master Bomber, in which he succeeded brilliantly. I strongly recommend an immediate award of the Distinguished Service Order for his outstanding operational record set out in the foregoing citation." This was duly approved on 11 August 1944 by Air Chief Marshal Sir Arthur Harris, Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Bomber Command.
Mentioned in Despatches October 1946
OBE Citation, London Gazette, 15 December 1942: "The KING has been graciously pleased to give orders for the following appointments to the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire: — To be an Additional Officer of the Military Division of the said Most Excellent Order:— Wing Commander John Raymond Jeudwine (33116), Royal Air Force. When the order for evacuation was given at Bandoeng, the squadron air crews proceeded to Tjilijap and awaited embarkation. Wing Commander Jeudwine, undaunted by the nonappearance of the ship detailed, immediately set to work to save as many of his squadron as possible from falling into the hands of the Japanese. He refused to believe that all channels of escape were closed. Wing Commander Jeudwine set out in a car to search the neighbouring ports and coast line for a suitable craft. Two lifeboats were discovered on the upper deck of a bombed ship, which he decided to use as a last resort. During his absence a party, detailed by him, set out to procure the necessary provisions and navigational equipment for the voyage. Wing Commander Jeudwine, being unable to find any other suitable craft, decided to use the lifeboats and ordered them to be lowered and made ready. During the voyage his ingenuity and sound knowledge of seamanship enabled the craft to be kept seaworthy in spite of the ever recurring mishaps to the boat and its gear. The many repairs to the broken rudder were carried out only by his resourcefulness and refusal to accept defeat. The repairs necessitated working overboard and Wing Commander Jeudwine insisted on sharing the risks of a shark-infested sea. His continual cheerfulness, courage and ability to bolster up morale was an inspiration to the whole crew, who realised that he alone would be able to bring the voyage to a successful conclusion".
The twelve men in the lifeboat reached Australia on 22nd April 1942, after 47 days at sea, navigating with only a school atlas and a sextant. On the 30th April the US Submarine 'Sturgeon' was sent to the beach at Nusa Kambangan to rescue the rest of 84 Squadron but the beach was deserted; having all been taken into captivity. Jeudwine's story and 'The Log of the Scorpion' is told in the book 'Global Warrior' by Alain Carpentier, Lionel Lacey-Johnson and Geoffrey Jeudwine (Jeudwine's nephew).

Last Operation Information

Start Date 19-10-1945
End Date 19-10-1945
Takeoff Station Little Staughton
Day/Night Raid Day
Operation Station Flight
Reason for Aircraft Loss Although G/C Jeudwine had over 2000 hours flying time to his credit, he almost none on type when he took this aircraft up. Went into a spin while attempting a slow turn and then became inverted. The board of enquiry found no evidence of structural failure and no attempt to abandon the aircraft.

Honour This Person

Since 1945 the brave men and women who gave their lives whilst in the service of Bomber Command, to protect our country have been largely ignored and forgotten by successive governments.

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Supporters

Elisabeth Hirons £20

Group Captain John Raymond Jeudwine was my father who I never knew as I was only a few months old when he was killed. I am proud to be his daughter.

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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.