Gomer S Morgan DFC RAFVR and crew – 103 Squadron and 576 Squadron – RAF Elsham Wolds – 1943/44
Gomer Morgan ( pictured above ) and his crew were posted to 103 Squadron at RAF Elsham Wolds on the 2nd October 1943 after training at 27 Operational Training Unit, Lichfield and then at 1662 Heavy Conversion Unit, Blyton.
Whilst serving with 103 Squadron they were attached to C Flight. The crew consisted of F/O Gomer S (Taff) Morgan RAFVR - pilot, Sgt J R (Jock) Mearns RAFVR - Flight Engineer, F/S N A Lambell RAAF – Air Bomber, P/O Edward McPhee (Jock) Graham RAFVR – Navigator. Sgt J R (Blondie) O'Hanlon RAFVR - Wireless Operator, Sgt Stan S Greenwood RAFVR – Mid Upper Gunner, Sgt C E (Bob) Shilling RAFVR – Rear Gunner.
Morgan, Lambell and Graham were awarded DFCs on the completion of their tour.
Incidentally Gomer was at the time a well known boy's name in Glamorgan, South Wales which must account for his nick name of Taff.
A posed photo taken whilst this crew were attached to 576 Squadron about Feb 1944. One of several taken of prominent Elsham Wolds crews at the time.
L to R - Sgt J R Mearns, F/O Gomer S Morgan (both in back of a truck); F/S Neil A. Lambell, RAAF bomb aimer (back to photographer), Sgt J R (Blondie) O'Hanlon, Sgt Stan S Greenwood , Sgt C E (Bob) Shilling, P/O Edward McPhee (Jock) Graham.
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The Morgan crew flew the following operations starting with 103 Squadron and then, from Dec 1943, with 576 Squadron. This was a very hard tour right through the Battle of Berlin.
They were one of the crews who regularly flew Lancaster ED888 the top scoring Bomber Command heavy bomber.
103 Squadron.
08-Oct-43 – Hanover – W4337 – F/O GS Morgan – Did not take off
18-Oct-43 – Hanover - ED888 – F/O GS Morgan
20-Oct-43 - Leipzig - ED888 – F/O GS Morgan - Combat with a single engined night fighter. No damage and no claim.
20-Oct-43 - Leipzig - ED888 – F/O GS Morgan - Combat with single engined night fighter. Mid upper gunner fired and enemy aircraft broke off. Evasive action taken.
22-Oct-43 - Kassel - ED888 – F/O GS Morgan – Early return - Navigator's oxygen unserviceable.
03-Nov-43 - Dusseldorf - ED888 – F/O GS Morgan
10-Nov-43 - Modane - ED888 - F/O GS Morgan
18-Nov-43 - Berlin - ED888 – F/O GS Morgan
22-Nov-43 - Berlin - ED888 – F/O GS Morgan
22-Nov-43 - Berlin - ED888 – F/O GS Morgan
23-Nov-43 - Berlin - ED888 – F/O GS Morgan - Did not take off - Cancelled due to high winds which caused some aircraft to swing on take off
26-Nov-43 – Berlin - ED888 – F/O GS Morgan - Diverted to Scorton because of bad visibility at base
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576 Squadron
16/12/1943 - Berlin - ED888 – F/O GS Morgan - 2nd pilot Sgt A C Blackie
20/12/1943 - Frankfurt - ED888 – F/O GS Morgan
23/12/1943 - Berlin - ED888 - F/O GS Morgan – War correspondent Mr B Frazier American. Frazier wrote an article for Yank magazine about this trip which is featured on the 576 Squadron website.
29/12/1943 - Berlin - ED888 – F/O GS Morgan
02/01/1944 - Berlin - ED888 – F/O GS Morgan - 2nd pilot F/O J M Shearer.
14/01/1944 - Brunswick - ED888 – F/O GS Morgan
20/01/1944 - Berlin - ED888 – F/O GS Morgan
21/01/1944 - Magdeburg - ED888 – F/O GS Morgan
27/01/1944 - Berlin - LM439 – F/O GS Morgan
28/01/1944 - Berlin - LM439 – F/O GS Morgan
30/01/1944 - Berlin - LM439 – F/O GS Morgan
24/02/1944 - Schweinfurt - LM439 – F/L GS Morgan
25/02/1944 - Augsburg - LM439 – F/L GS Morgan
15/03/1944 - Stuttgart - LM439 – F/L GS Morgan
18/03/1944 - Frankfurt - LM439 – F/L GS Morgan - 2nd pilot F/S V P Tomlin
22/03/1944 - Frankfurt - LM439 – F/L GS Morgan
24/03/1944 - Berlin - LM439 – F/L GS Morgan
26/03/1944 - Essen - ND385 – F/L GS Morgan
11/04/1944 - Aachen - LM439 – F/L GS Morgan
20/04/1944 - Cologne - LM439 – F/L GS Morgan
Sgt Stan S Greenwood was killed on the 22nd May 1944 with F/O R R Reed and crew. Stan Greenwood had missed several operations in the middle of the Morgan crew tour for unknown reasons.
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P/O N A Lambell DFC RAAF
Neil Allason Lambell DFC ( pictured above ) of Gulargambone, NSW. A grazier, born at Greenwich NSW on 27 January 1922. He enlisted on 12 December 1941 and trained as a bombardier in Australia on Avro Anson and Fairey Battle aircraft at Somers, Mt Gambier, Sale and Parkes before embarking for overseas service from Sydney on 24 August 1942.
In total he flew 29 operations comprising 195 hours of flying.
PO Lambell was recommended for the Distinguished Flying Cross on 6 June 1944 for 'numerous attacks against the enemy'.
His citation reads in full: 'As Air Bomber Pilot Officer Lambell has completed many operational sorties over enemy territory. He has participated in attacks on some of the enemy’s most heavily defended targets including 11 sorties against Berlin, and he has invariably performed his allotted tasks with consistent skill and courage, often in the face of strong enemy opposition. On one occasion during an attack on Berlin he was hit on the face by a piece of shrapnel whilst making his bombing run, but, undeterred, he released his bombs at the correct time and it was not until his aircraft landed at base that other crew members of the crew realised he had been injured.'
His nose was seriously damaged on the occasion described above and remedial surgery was undertaken by pioneer plastic surgeon Dr Archibald McIndoe. That made him a member of the exclusive Guinea Pig Club. It does not seem to have stopped him flying operationally and he finished his tour like a goodun.
Neil Lambell was tragically killed in a car accident near his home at Gulargambone in 1968.
Item written and compiled by David Fell. Top photo from my archive, crew photo of the Mildenhall Register, portrait photo courtesy of the Lambell family
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