Sloan, Gerald Harper Died

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Personal Information

Rank Sgt
Forename(s) Gerald Harper
Surname Sloan
Gender M
Age 33
Date of Death 27-06-1951
Next of Kin Son of James Sloan of Castle Blayney, Co Monaghan, Republic of Eire
SLOAN GH

Aircraft Information

Aircraft De Havilland Mosquito B35
Serial Number TK635
Markings

Memorial Information

Burial/Memorial Country Eire
Burial/Memorial Place Ballybay First Presbyterian Churchyard, County Monaghan, Eire

IBCC Memorial Information

Phase Post-War
Panel Number POST (not yet erected on site)

Enlistment Information

Service Number 1796449
Service Royal Air Force
Squadron 139 (Jamaica)
Squadron Motto Si placet necamus (We destroy at will)
Trade Navigator
Country of Origin United Kingdom

Miscellaneous Information

Enlisted Auxiliary Air Force (AC2 – Aircraftsman 2nd Class) 3 May 1943; Promoted Sgt Nav – (Sergeant Navigator AAF) January 1945; Discharged Auxiliary Air Force in to RAF 27 May 1947 and Graded Navigator IV RAF 28 May 1947. Graded Navigator III RAF 16 December 1947. Graded Navigator II RAF 14 April 1949. Graded to Navigator RAF 1 September 1950. Promoted Sergeant Navigator RAF 31 December 1950.
Postings: 21 September 1945 – No 27 ACHU (Air Crew Holding Unit) 16 May 1946 – RAF Halfpenny Green (Navigator Training School) 16 May 1946 – No 7 ANS – (Number 7 Air Navigators School) 3 June 1947 – To RAF Leuchars 29 July 1947 – Posted 202 Squadron 3 August 1947 – Sent to 204 Advanced Flying School 17 February 1948 – Posted to 231 Operational Conversion Unit (RAF Coningsby) 14 April 1948 – Posted to 139 Squadron (RAF Coningsby) 21 November 1949 – Deployed to RAF Shallufa (Canal Zone)
He was awarded the War Medal 1939-45 and the Defence Medal.

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
Sailes R S (F/L) Died

Last Operation Information

Start Date 27-06-1951
End Date 27-06-1951
Takeoff Station Hemswell
Day/Night Raid Day
Operation Training - takeoff time 0810hrs
Reason for Aircraft Loss Aircraft seen trailing black smoke before it crashed at Warren Farm, Cold Harbour, Lincolnshire at 0825hrs. The crash investigation concluded that the cause of the crash was engine failure.
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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.