Ray's War

'Olga' ~ Supermarine Spitfire "Olga" of No. 121 Squadron RAF based at Debden, Essex.

Skegness (Skeggy / Skeg-Vegas)

Ray was originally billeted in Skegness after enlisting. Skegness has long been a holiday destination for East Midlanders, affectionately know as Skeg-Vegas or just Skeggy. Below you can see some saucy postcards sent home.

Ansty Airfield

Ray was initially based at Ansty Airfield for around two years.He was part of the 51 Group where the 9 EFTS (Elementary Flying Training School) was based. The flying schools like the one based at Ansty provided initial assessment before pupil pilots were sent abroad in the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan, which was operated by Air Service Training. Ansty is located 5 miles east of Coventry, they used planes such as the Avro Anson, Hawker Harts, Hawker Hinds, Tiger Moths and Clouds to train the pupils. The airfield was opened in 1936 and after training a large number of pupils closed in 1953.

Castle Toward

In April 1943 Ray was commando training in Castle Toward on the Isle of Bute in the Highlands of Scotland. At Castle Toward commandos and infantry battalions were being trained in amphibious operations to prepare for the invasion of the Normandy beaches. Ray can remember having to jump off a landing craft in full kit, carrying a bicycle and guns and being shouted at to "take a deep breath and keep walking towards land". In the picture below you can see R.A.F. personnel practicing a landing from the sea during a combined operations command exercise at Castle Toward.

Debden Airfield in Essex.

Film Location

Debden was chosen as a location for the film "It’s in the Air" in which George Formby was to pilot a Hawker Fury through Hangar No. 3. The rather sharper angle of the hangars at Debden built around the tarmac apron allowed free access at both ends of the end hangar. The flying for the sequence was actually done by Flying Officer R. H. A. Lee who went missing on August 18th 1940 when he was last seen ten miles north of Foulness Point chasing three German aircraft out to sea.

While in the R.A.F, Ray and Joan had two children. The first son was born in November 1942, he was named Roger (my Father). The second child was a daughter called Margaret, born in November 1944.

A birthday card sent home to Roger from France ...

Landing on Omaha Beach (Europe 1944)

There were two phases to Operation “OVERLORD”. The first phase was the assault landing on the Normandy beaches and the capture and development of airfield sites and the port of Cherbourg. The second phase was the capture of territory up to the river Loire and the ports of Brittany.

The first phase, the Normandy landings, codenamed Operation Neptune, commenced at 6:30 am on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 (D-Day). They had been delayed because of bad weather.

The British and Canadian landings were made on the Normandy beaches code-named Gold, Juno and Sword. The first R.A.F. regiment units arrived off Juno beach on D-Day itself but because of the congestion caused by the assault landing of over 25,000 men on Juno beach alone, they were not able to disembark until D-Day+1.

The U.S. First Army came in on Omaha & Utah beaches. On Omaha the initial assault waves of tanks, infantry and engineers took heavy casualties, many officers were instantly killed or wounded.

Omaha was the most heavily fortified beach with high bluffs defended by funneled mortars, machine guns and artillery. The pre-landing aerial and naval bombardment of the bunkers proved to be ineffective and the majority of landings had drifted eastwards missing their assigned sectors. It took until D-Day+3 to meet the initial objectives.

Ray's squadron landed on Omaha Beach in July, they came in on the American Liberty Ship J.D. Ross. New arrivals were still being hounded with German gunfire.

His diary simply reads :-

"OMAHA BEACHHEAD LANDED ENORMOUS WELCOME"

"WITH FLACK SLEPT TRANSIT AREA "

"OMAHA BEACHHEAD - AMERICAN SECTOR . HOT RECEPTION"

Arrival of 2798 Squadron

Ray's Squadron, 2798 had been based at R.A.F. Station Holmsley South when they received a signal on the 14th July 1944 from the main 2nd Tactical Air Force headquarters to transfer the unit to the 85 Group. They would be attached to the American sector of the front and operating with the 9th U.S.A. Air Force. Wing Commander Guggenhiem would be the R.A.F. commander in their area and the British portion of the American sector would be commanded by Group Captain Moseby.

On the 17th July the squadron left Homesley South to move to the concentration area at Old Sarum, near Salisbury in Wiltshire. On the 18th the Officers were given their final briefing before they moved to Southampton for embarkation on the S.S J.D.Ross.

They embarked at 2300 on the 19th and set sail for the French coast at 0400. They dropped anchor at 1900 hours on the 20th July on the Normandy coast, but because of bad weather etc they did not disembark until the evening of the 24th and early morning of the 25th. During the landing enemy aircraft attacked the beach but no casualties were sustained by the unit.

Before leaving the ship they were given the American "C" ration, this consisted of tinned food made up of meat & stew or meat & hash, confectionery, tin of biscuits and a hot drink. Each man receiving several tins per day.

Liberty Ships

S.S J.D. Ross, Ray's Ship that transported him & his squadron over to France, originated from Portland Oregon. This was one of the 2710 Liberty ships built between September 27, 1941 and September 2, 1945. She was later renamed as the Lampsis and made it through the war but actually sank on January 10th 1966.Initially, the ships - with certain military exceptions and in some of the variations to the basic type - were generally named after eminent Americans from all walks of life who had made notable contribution to the history or the culture of North America in general or the United States of America in particular - some famous, some forgotten, yet others heroic - or even mythical. Then, as war progressed, 120 Liberties were named for heroes of the American Merchant Marine; not only those who had lost their lives by enemy action but in other disasters at sea. All ranks were among them, from master to seaman, chief engineer to wiper, purser to cook, as well as radio operators, utility men and a stewardess. Altogether, more than one hundred Liberty ships were named after women and another group of ships honoured some of the war correspondents killed on duty. But the main guideline was that the name used had to be of a deceased person and during the term of the Liberty shipbuilding program the Maritime Commission received many letters from American citizens suggesting that certain ancestors or relatives 'qualified' for a ship to be named after them.

Only one Liberty ship, Francis J. O'Gara, was named for a living person - and this was in error. The Purser of Jean Nicolet, sunk by a Japanese submarine, was thought to have perished, but returned home after the war from a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp. There were also complaints received at the USMC Public Relations Office, generally from persons who objected to the names already allocated. It is said that one prominent politician complained '... I understand my name has been given to a Liberty ship. I am not dead, not in dry dock and do not need my bottom scraped. Please cancel the name.' He was advised that the ship had been named in honor of another person of the same name who had been dead for many years.

*http://www.armed-guard.com/ag15.html

Ray's Initial Diary Entries & Squadron Records

From Renne to Paris !

Air Technical Intelligence

The success with which Regiment squadrons had achieved in escorting Air Technical Intelligence (ATI) teams in the Mediterranean theatre resulted in their employment in similar roles in Europe.

With armoured car and rifle flights to escort them, ATI teams went ahead to secure German radars and to examine the major rocket sites. Ray and his Unit were now attached to the Air Technical Intelligence (ATI) teams and now closer to the front line. They were also working with the American Rangers who he thought were a little mad. Ray worked throughout the Brittany region, moving to and from the Rennes base, including Saint-Malo and Lorient, where he was with 2 Flight on patrol, in Brest he joined 1 & 2 Flight + 1 Group for reconnaissance and then back to Rennes.

The pages from Ray's Diary record the period in Paris :-

"FIRST IN THE CAPITAL, RECCE GROUP"

"Paris 3 FLT + ATI, RADIO SECRET LUFFTWAFFE H.Q."

"SUNDAY 3rd SEPT RANSACKED THREE HQs IN PARIS"

"OFFICER NEARLY KISSED ME 350 A 'Sergeant Stripes' CREDIT"

"PLENTY OF RADIO EQUIPMENT SNIPED AT, JOE NEARLY HAD IT"

"PARIS PEOPLE VERY GAY, PEOPLE KISSING THE ENGLISH ESPECIALLY RAF"

"PARIS 'CHAMPS ELYSEES' RAFR BILLETED THERE RECCE"

"5th SEPT RECALLED"

Belgium

On the 5th of September Ray's Unit was recalled back to the Rennes base. By the 6th they were preparing to leave for Belgium and the Low Countries.

A Signal was received from 85 Group for the unit to proceed to Belgium with 25 sector on the 6th. The next day was taken up with packing of equipment and collecting a four days supply of rations and sufficient petrol to complete the journey without re-fuelling to allow the squadron to proceed to Brussels. The Squadron left Rennes at 1100 hours on the 8th for Belgium, travelling in two convoys of ten vehicles, the convoy completed 150 miles on the first day before bivouacking for the night. By the end of the 9th they had reached the outskirts of Amiens where they camped, they finally arrived at their R.V. near Brussels at 1400 on the 10th. On the 13th No. 3 Flight left camp to afford protection to 15119 G.C.I. , 15119 was a a GCI Ground Control Interception station. On the 15th Flight Officer Green brought up No. 2 & 3 sections of No. 3 Flight to Heusden to reinforce No 1 section.

While out in the evening enjoying a beer in Halle, Belgium, Ray met the Chief of the Maquis. The Maquis were the underground resistance unit which had secretly fought against the Nazis occupation, originally made up of men that had escaped to the mountains to avoid German capture and deportation, they became more organised as the war progressed. The Maquis had been the group that had led the 2798 Squadron secretly into Paris on the 25th of August.

In Heusden Ray and Joe met a young couple called Stan & Yvonne Claesseus-Claes. They shared an evening with plenty of champagne and beer and they became long life friends, corresponding many times after the war had finished.

Holland

On the 16th September f/o Green contacted the Rear H.Q. 11th Armoured Division at Linde, Maeseyck to obtain intelligent reports, the Allies are now patrolling the entire length of the Escaut Canal as far as Walkenswaard. Reports stated that the Germans are now completely disorganised. Regiments are now meaningless and stragglers are being gathered into companies named after the officer commanding them. The total strength of the Luftwaffe is estimated to be no more than 1150 and is entirely based in Germany. On the 19th Ray's Flight situated at 15119 G.C.I. was reinforced by members of the No. 4 Flight and 'A' troop of AFV's of 2804 Squadron.

Eindhoven

Ray entered in his diary that he entered the City of Eindhoven on the 20th September, this day is remembered annually as their day of Liberation. On the 21st all of No. 3 Flight left Heusden for a new site but were held up by Traffic Control so decided instead to move to Eindhoven Aerodrome. On the left you can see the population of Eindhoven watching Allied forces entering the city following its liberation from Axis forces on the 19th September 1944.

Operation Market Garden

This period saw particularly fierce fighting in the Netherlands. General Montgomery had designed a plan to force an entry into Germany and over the Rhine, the plan involved capturing five bridges across the Maas (Meuse River) and two arms of the Rhine (the Waal and the Lower Rhine) and other canals. This would allow a rapid advance by armored units into Germany, hopefully to finish the War by Christmas. This plan was called Operation Market Garden and it took place between the 17th and the 25th of September 1944. This is remembered in the film 'A Bridge Too Far'. Although it did gain some initial success the ultimate failure of Market Garden ended expectations of finishing the war early.On the right you can see the paratroopers arrive in Holland at the start of Operation Market Garden.

Cortenberg (Kortenberg) & Wamel - Belgium

On the 29th September orders were received from 15119 G.C.I to move to the Grave area, the convoy included No. 3 Rifle Flight, they left Eindhoven at 1400. On the 2nd October the Unit was visited by S/Ldr Lang, f/o Green was given preliminary warning of the recall of his flights to Squadron headquarters in order to re-equip. They left for base on the 10th October after handing their duties over to 2713 Squadron.

The Squadron moved into their winter quarters in the village of Cortenberg, they used beds and lockers left behind by the Germans to furnish their new base. In the Cortenberg base there would be 36 beds waiting for the Flight, not always occupied, the sections of men would move to various locations on recce's and then back to Cortenberg. In his diary Ray recorded there was plenty of flying bombs in the area at that time.

On the 14th there was a visit by Lt/Col Grey Horton who inspected the Squadron and addressed the men on their new attachment to the Guards Armoured Division. They left for this new attachment on the 21st and arrived at Wamel at 1730 hours, here they inspected the new positions they were to defend. The 43rd Reconnaissance Regiment was responsible for the defence of the area by day and 2798 manned the defence's between 18.00 and 07.00. Each defended location was in telephone communications with B.H.Q. On the 24th f/o Green defending No. 5 Post reported that a Dutchman arrived stating he had swum the river, the man was taken back to B.H.Q. in an exhausted state and was handed over to the Dutch Underground for interrogation. Reports were coming into H.Q regarding the noise of German horsedrawn and tracks from just across the river, the Artillery Divisions were notified and they directed fire on the target. Later on the 27th more artillery was directed at the noise of tracked vehicles, f/o Green reporting that one salvo caused a great commotion and screams were heard, the noises of the tracked vehicles ceased. No.3 Flight left Wamel at first light on the 30th October and headed back to Cortenberg.

Nijmegen, Regne & the Ardennes

On 15th October Ray notes his unit was in Nijmegen where the action was hot with close contact with jerries. Around this time Ray witnessed a U.S. Dakota being hit by German gunfire. He remembers his officer shouting to take cover and moments later the Dakota burst into flames and came spinning towards the ground after being hit on the wing, he records two such hits in his diary, adding it was a Messerschmitt 109E that had brought down the U.S. Planes.

The Ardennes

Ray noted down he was in Bastogne in the Ardennes towards the end of the year, Ray can remember the terrible snow and bitterly cold weather that winter. The Ardennes region became known for infamous Battle of the Bulge where the U.S. became surrounded at the small Belgium town of Bastogne. On December 16th, taking advantage of the cold and the fog, the German artillery started by attacking the American troops around Bastogne. A few days later Brigadier General McAuliffe and the 101st Airborne Division along with elements of the 10th Armored Division and the 82nd airborne arrived to counter-attack but after heavy fighting, became encircled within the town. On December 22nd, German emissaries asked for the American surrender, to which the General answered in a scribbled note - “Nuts!”. The next day, the weather cleared up, allowing air retaliation and the parachuting of much needed food, medicine, and weaponry. On December 26th, troops under the command of General Patton broke the deadlock. Fighting finally stopped three weeks later. In the above picture an SS-Obersturmführer (senior assault leader) consults a map in the vicinity of Malmedy, at Kaiserbaracke Crossroads, Belgium on the 18th December 1944.

Ray also visited Malmedy, then part of Germany. From 1940 to 1945 Malmedy was re-incorporated into Germany, this was reversed after the war. In 1944, during the Battle of the Bulge , the area was the site of the Malmedy massacre, where 84 American prisoners of war were executed by German SS troops. Between the 23rd and 25th December 1944 the city was repeatedly bombed by the U.S. Air Force, as many as 200 civilians were killed, the number of American casualties has never been revealed.

Victory in Europe (VE Day)

The German war machine was now starting to break down and the end of the war was close in Europe. On the 3rd May 1945 in the Luneberg area Flight Officer Green and No.3 Flight gave assistance in sorting out the many hundreds of vehicles full of enemy P.O.W.'s that had been roving the countryside all day. There were obvious signs of a mass surrender. On the 4th April Flight Officer Edwards proceeded to visit No.3 Flight at Luneberg, the journey from Schneverdingen was extremely slow owing to the roads being congested by thousands of Germans returning to give themselves up. At 20.00 hours news was received of the surrender of all forces in North West Germany, Holland and Denmark, becoming effective at 08.00 hours on 5th May 1945. The World War II Allies formally accepted the unconditional surrender of the armed forces of Nazi Germany and the end of Adolf Hitler's Third Reich was signed on 7th May in Reims, France and on 8th May in Berlin, Germany. On left you can see the official 2nd Tactical Airforce card sent home by Ray to commemorate VE Day , signed with his usual 9 Kisses for Luck !On the 15th August 1945 V.J. (Victory over Japan Day) was announced to the Squadron, this effectively ended Work War II. Work proceeded as usual in the camp but the personnel were keen to take advantage of having 48 hours on U.K. or continental leave. Also on the 15th Ray's commanding Officer, Flight Officer Green departed for his new posting to 2710 Squadron. On the 19th of August personnel were issued with their medals, star ribbons 1939/45 and France/Germany stars. Ray didn't know it at the time but his brother Alfred (Alf) was still out in Japan and had been held as a prisoner of war since Singapore had fallen to the Japanese Imperial Army.On the 24th August the unit received news of a new assignment in Kiel, the Squadron moving on the 27th August 1945, the remaining squadron left for Kiel on the 28th, commitments were handed over to 2856 squadron at Rensberg. The Squadron quickly made it self busy repairing three German rifle ranges which had been found, they involved themselves in local sport leagues and even running a local farm. Theft of equipment and produce from the farm was causing an issue so the guards were doubled and on the 30th September the culprits were apprehended and then sent to the Military Government for the necessary action. As the year progresses the Squadron is now split between several locations including Kiel, Rensberg, List (Isle of Sylt) and Husum. It was reported in the Operations Book that all personnel remaining at List and the detachment at Kiel had a very good xmas and everything was done to make it as happy as possible. Turkey and xmas pudding and beer was made available to all personnel and the unit was able to issue an extra ration of chocolate and cigarettes to all personnel. In February the Squadron was in complete command of List Barracks, but they were soon on the move to B.166 Airfield Flensberg, arriving on the 4th April, leaving only 1 officer and 59 O.R's at List.

On the 10th April verbal orders were received from Group Regiment Officer to move the Squadron to B116 Airfield Wunstorf, which was completed on the 16th May 1946. On the way to Wunstorf the squadron staged a night at 18 B.P.C Hamburg, Ray vividly remembers the foul smell of dead bodies that hung in the air while in the city of Hamburg. On the 1st August 1946 B.A.F.S.V (British Armed Forces Special Vouchers) system came into operation and the Squadron is now under the control of 1306 Wing R.A.F. Regiment and later on the 6th the 1304 Wing R.A.F. take over. These sites would be Ray's last locations in Europe.