W/O Aubrey H Pargeter RNZAF and crew – 103 Squadron – RAF Elsham Wolds – 1943
Failed to Return – 20/21st October 1943 – Avro Lancaster III – ED881 – Op Leipzig
Aubrey Pargeter and his crew were posted to 103 Squadron at RAF Elsham Wolds late July / early August 1943
The crew consisted of :-
W/O Aubrey Huia Pargeter RNZAF
Sgt Harry Sykes RAFVR
Sgt William George Cane RAFVR
Sgt Leslie Cross RAFVR
Sgt Harry Edward Thompson RAFVR
Sgt John Cook McLean RAFVR
Sgt James Paterson Neville RAFVR
For their final operation the crew were accompanied by a second pilot - F/S Edgar Harold Willcocks RAFVR
They were lost on their 14th operation. See below :-
12-Aug-43 – Milan – Lancaster – ED417 – F/S AH Pargeter RNZAF
17-Aug-43 – Peenemunde – Lancaster – ED942 – F/S AH Pargeter RNZAF
23-Aug-43 – Berlin – Lancaster – LM343 – F/S AH Pargeter RNZAF – Did not take off - Damaged when W4323 blew up at dispersal.
27-Aug-43 – Nuremberg – Lancaster – W4337 – F/S AH Pargeter RNZAF
29-Aug-43 – Munchengladbach – Lancaster – ED881 – F/S AH Pargeter RNZAF
31-Aug-43 – Berlin – Lancaster – ED881 – F/S AH Pargeter RNZAF
03-Sep-43 – Berlin – Lancaster – ED881 – F/S AH Pargeter RNZAF – Early return - Fuel tank unserviceable
05-Sep-43 – Mannheim – Lancaster – ED881 – F/S AH Pargeter RNZAF - Hit and holed by flak.
22-Sep-43 – Hanover – Lancaster – ED881 – W/O AH Pargeter RNZAF
23-Sep-43 – Mannheim – Lancaster – ED881 – W/O AH Pargeter RNZAF
27-Sep-43 – Hanover – Lancaster – ED881 – W/O AH Pargeter RNZAF
07-Oct-43 – Stuttgart – Lancaster – ED881 – W/O AH Pargeter RNZAF
08-Oct-43 – Hanover – Lancaster – JB147 – W/O AH Pargeter RNZAF – Early return - Late take off due to swinging off runway. Unable to set course in time owing to direct reading compass and Gee unserviceable
20-Oct-43 – Leipzig – Lancaster – ED881 – W/O AH Pargeter RNZAF – FTR - Lost without trace.
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W/O Aubrey Huia Pargeter RNZAF ( Pictured above ) – Pilot - 30 – 103 Sqn – Son of Thomas and Annie Sylvia Pargeter of Christchurch, Canterbury, New Zealand – Runnymede Memorial
F/S Edgar Harold Willcocks RAFVR - Second Pilot - 103 Sqn – Runnymede Memorial
Sgt Harry Sykes RAFVR – 21 - 103 Sqn - Son of Edwin and Hilda Sykes, of Retford, Nottinghamshire – Runnymede Memorial
Sgt William George Cane RAFVR – 25 - 103 Sqn - Son of William George and Ada Jane Cane of Newport, Monmouthshire – Runnymede Memorial
Sgt Leslie Cross RAFVR ( pictured below ) – 23 - 103 Sqn - Son of Joseph Cross, and of Jane Cross of Preesall, Lancashire – Runnymede Memorial
Sgt Harry Edward Thompson RAFVR - 103 Sqn – Runnymede War Memorial
Sgt John Cook McLean RAFVR – 28 - 103 Sqn - Son of Peter and Janet Cook McLean of Larkhall, Lanarkshire – Runnymede Memorial
Sgt James Paterson Neville RAFVR – 19 - 103 Sqn - Son of John W. and Rebecca Neville of Thornton Heath, Surrey – Runnymede Memorial
Sgt Leslie Cross
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F/S Edgar Harold Willcocks RAFVR
Edgar Harold Willcocks was born in January 1922 to William Thomas Willcocks and Beatrice Nora Willcocks (nee Terrill) in Saltash in Cornwall. He was the youngest son of 5 children: his oldest brother Henry and three older sisters Beatrice, Dorothy and Ruby. His father William Willcocks was a Royal Navy Pensioner. He served over 25 years in the Royal Navy ending his career as a Chief Writer at Devonport. He served in WW1 including in the battle of the Falklands. However, both his sons chose to join the RAF reserve rather than the RN. Edgar's older brother Henry (known as Harry) born Dec 1905 also joined the RAF reserve and became a chief engineer. Tracy Gardiner
Sgt William George Cane RAFVR.
Sgt Cane was a former London Metropolitan Police Officer
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20-Oct-43 - Leipzig
103 Squadron detailed 14 aircraft for this attack on the German city of Leipzig. The attack was hampered by 9/10ths to 10/10ths cloud. Pathfinders used both sky and ground marking in view of the cloud. Bombing heights were between 18000 ft and 22000 ft and hampered by severe icing conditions. Owing to the weather conditions marking was poor and the raid scattered. Flak was negligible although searchlights could not penetrate the cloud. F/O Morgan's gunners drove off a Fw190 which was the only fighter sighting reported. All returned to base except W/O Pargeter and crew.
For this attack on the important Nazi industrial city of Leipzig Bomber Command detailed a total of 358 Lancasters of 1, 5, 6 and No 8 Groups. 16 Lancasters lost, 4.5 per cent of the force. This was the first serious attack on this distant German city. Weather conditions were very difficult - Bomber Command records describe them as 'appalling' and the bombing was very scattered.
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Lancaster – ED881
This machine was lost on its 27th operation. See below :-
23-May-43 – Dortmund – Lancaster – ED881 – Sgt EJ Presland
25-May-43 – Dusseldorf – Lancaster – ED881 – Sgt EJ Presland
27-May-43 – Essen – Lancaster – ED881 – Sgt EJ Presland
29-May-43 – Wuppertal – Lancaster – ED881 – Sgt EJ Presland
11-Jun-43 – Dusseldorf – Lancaster – ED881 – Sgt EJ Presland
12-Jun-43 – Bochum – Lancaster – ED881 – Sgt EJ Presland
14-Jun-43 – Oberhausen – Lancaster – ED881 – Sgt EJ Presland
16-Jun-43 – Cologne – Lancaster – ED881 – Sgt EJ Presland
21-Jun-43 – Krefeld – Lancaster – ED881 – Sgt EJ Presland
22-Jun-43 – Mulheim – Lancaster – ED881 – Sgt EJ Presland
08-Jul-43 – Cologne – Lancaster – ED881 – W/O EJ Presland
09-Jul-43 – Gelsenkirchen – Lancaster – ED881 – F/S G Bass – Early return - Complete oxygen failure.
12-Jul-43 – Turin – Lancaster – ED881 – W/O EJ Presland
29-Aug-43 – Munchengladbach – Lancaster – ED881 – F/S AH Pargeter RNZAF
31-Aug-43 – Berlin – Lancaster – ED881 – F/S AH Pargeter RNZAF
03-Sep-43 – Berlin – Lancaster – ED881 – F/S AH Pargeter RNZAF – Early return - Fuel tank unserviceable
05-Sep-43 – Mannheim – Lancaster – ED881 – F/S AH Pargeter RNZAF - Hit and holed by flak.
06-Sep-43 – Munich – Lancaster – ED881 – F/S KS Knott
22-Sep-43 – Hanover – Lancaster – ED881 – W/O AH Pargeter RNZAF
23-Sep-43 – Mannheim – Lancaster – ED881 – W/O AH Pargeter RNZAF
27-Sep-43 – Hanover – Lancaster – ED881 – W/O AH Pargeter RNZAF
29-Sep-43 – Bochum – Lancaster – ED881 – F/S ET Townsend RNZAF
02-Oct-43 – Munich – Lancaster – ED881 – F/S MJ Graham – Early return - Unserviceable compass and Gee
04-Oct-43 – Ludwigshafen/Diversion – Lancaster – ED881 – Sgt CC Rollins – Early return – Mid upper turret unserviceable
07-Oct-43 – Stuttgart – Lancaster – ED881 – W/O AH Pargeter RNZAF
18-Oct-43 – Hanover – Lancaster – ED881 – W/O CC Rollin
20-Oct-43 – Leipzig – Lancaster – ED881 – W/O AH Pargeter RNZAF – FTR - Lost without trace.
Item compiled by David Fell. Photo courtesy of the Auckland War Museum on Line Cenotaph. Cross photo courtesy of the Cross family. Also thanks to Tracy Gardiner for the background info
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