FIELDS, Antony Henry (Tony)

P/O 43257, Air Gunner, R.A.F., 10th Squadron

Died 04/06/1940, Age 18, died at Lower Manor Farm, Battisford

Buried 08/06/1940

Son of Ernest Wyld Fields (1895-1951) and Rose Fields (nee North)

Address at time of death: 17 Hinkler Street, Cleethorpes

 http://www.epibreren.com/ww2/raf/ gives details of the crash in which Tony died:

Type: Whitley Mk.V

Serial number: P4963, ZA-B

Operation: Homberg

Lost: 04/06/1940

Flight Lieutenant (Pilot) Allan S. Phillips, RAF 39153, WIA

F/O G.L.C. Bagshaw- WIA

Sgt D. Donald- WIA

Sgt Nicholson

Pilot Officer (Air Gnr.) Antony H. Fields (Tony), RAF 43257, 10 Sqdn., age 18, 04/06/1940, Cleethorpes Cemetery, UK 

Airborne 21.19 hrs 03/06/1940 from Dishforth. Encountered thick fog on return and crash landed 0345 4Jun40 at Lower Manor Farm, Battisford, 2 miles WSW of Needham Market, Suffolk. P/O Fields was killed in the crash, and three others were admitted to Ipswich Hospital with quite serious injuries. F/L Phillips recovered from his injuries sufficiently well to resume operational flying. He was KIA 21/22Oct40 and is buried in Durnbach War Cemetery, Germany.

 http://www.yorkshire-aircraft.co.uk/aircraft/yorkshire/york40/p4963b.html gives more details about both the plane and the crew’s history:

Whitley P4963 hit by flak, returned to Dishforth airfield.

On the night of 21st/22nd May 1940 this aircraft sustained flak damage on an operational flight to attack Julich, to bomb road and rail communications. The pilot was able to return safely to Dishforth and land without further damage at 03.21hrs.

Pilot - Acting F/Lt Allan Smith Phillips DFC RAF (39153), of Shenfield, Essex.

Second Pilot - P/O Leslie David Wood RAF (40277).

Observer - P/O Antony Henry "Tony" Fields RAF (43257), of Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire.

Wireless Operator - AC Robert Edward Nicholson RAF (611204).

Rear Gunner - AC Thomas Allan Matthews RAF (616167).

Whitley P4963 was built to contract 75147/38 by Armstrong Whitworth Ltd. at Baginton and was awaiting collection on 27th April 1940, it was delivered to 10 Squadron at Dishforth later in the month during the unit's conversion from Mk.IV Whitley's. Cat.M/FB damage was recorded following the flak damage as stated above and the aircraft was repaired on site and returned to the unit. On the night of 21st / 22nd May 1940 it was again damaged by flak and repaired on site with Cat.M/FB damage being recorded. On 4th June 1940 it sustained Cat.W/FB damage after a crash landing while returning from ops to Hamburg near Battisford, Suffolk. F/Lt Phillips was the pilot on this occasion and he was injured, while the promoted Sgt Nicholson escaped injury however P/O Fields was killed in the crash; he was only eighteen years old and is buried in Cleethorpes Cemetery. Tony Fields was one of the youngest airmen killed in Bomber Command service during the whole war. Antony Fields received his commission on 7th April 1940 to the rank of P/O on probation.

F/Lt Allan Smith Phillips DFC recovered from the injuries sustained in June 1940 and returned to operational flying with 10 Squadron, he was promoted to F/Lt on 3rd September 1940 but was killed during the night of 22nd/23rd October 1940 when Whitley T4152 was lost on ops to Stuttgart. He and his then crew are buried in Durnbach War Cemetery. Allan Phillips was born in the Romford area of Essex in 1912.

The award of the DFC was Gazetted on 17th May 1940, the citation for the award was a joint one, it reads.."These officers and N.C.O.s have made a large number of reconnaissance and bombing raids over enemy country and over enemy air and naval bases. One officer, compelled to land owing to shortage of petrol after a flight over Warsaw, found he was in Germany. Despite the smallness of the field and petrol shortage he managed to take off again and save both aircraft and crew. Another officer pressed home a low bombing attack on the German cruiser Admiral Soheer in Schillig Roads last September. One of the N.C.O.s obtained a direct hit on a submarine in Heligoland Bight, two others did valuable work in attacks on enemy submarines."

Robert Nicholson was awarded the DFM for service with 10 Squadron it was Gazetted on 26th August 1941 but with effect of 19th September 1940. By this date he was already a PoW as on 1st October 1940 Sgt Nicholson was flying in Whitley T4130 on Ops to Berlin, the aircraft crashed near Badbergen, Germany. Sgt Nicholson was taken prisoner of war.

Thomas Matthews was Mentioned in Despatches on 1st January 1941. Having received a posting to 77 Squadron he was awarded the DFM while serving with them, Gazetted on 21st November 1941. He was later granted a commission in the RAF as P/O on probation (emergency) on 26th November 1941 (74309) but his commission was only brief as it was terminated on 6th May 1942 for reasons unknown.

The date of Leslie Wood's commission is not yet known but must have been in 1938 or 1939 probably initially to Acting P/O on probation, he would have been graded as P/O on probation and confirmed as P/O on further dates into his service in 1939, possibly around September 1939. He was then promoted to F/O (war subs) on 23rd April 1940, to F/Lt (war subs) on 23rd April 1941, to S/Ldr (temp) on 1st July 1943. He transferred to the Reserve while in the rank of F/Lt (temp S/Ldr) on 23rd August 1943 and was called up for immediate service. Post-War he remained the RAFO until relinquishing his commission of F/Lt (retaining the rank of S/Ldr) on 18th May 1958.

While with 10 Squadron he ditched Whitley N1483 in the Irish Sea on 1st October 1940 on return from Ops to Berlin and overshot England completely.