W/O John T C Rhodes RAFVR and crew – 103 Squadron – RAF Elsham Wolds – 1943
Failed to Return – 22/23rd October 1943 – Avro Lancaster III – JB376 – Op Kassel
John Rhodes and his crew were posted to 103 Squadron at RAF Elsham Wolds late September or early October 1943 and were lost on their 20th operation.
27-Jul-43 – Hamburg – Lancaster – ED767 – F/S JTC Rhodes
29-Jul-43 – Hamburg – Lancaster – ED767 – F/S JTC Rhodes
02-Aug-43 – Hamburg – Lancaster – ED767 – F/S JTC Rhodes
07-Aug-43 – Turin – Lancaster – ED942 – F/S JTC Rhodes
09-Aug-43 – Mannheim – Lancaster – ED942 – F/S JTC Rhodes
10-Aug-43 – Nuremberg – Lancaster – ED942 – F/S JTC Rhodes - Early return – Port outer engine unserviceable
15-Aug-43 – Milan – Lancaster – ED942 – F/S JTC Rhodes
27-Aug-43 – Nuremberg – Lancaster – ED942 – F/S JTC Rhodes - Combat. Claimed twin engined night fighter destroyed. Later followed by 3 enemy aircraft which did not attack.
29-Aug-43 – Munchengladbach – Lancaster – ED942 – F/S JTC Rhodes – Did not take off
31-Aug-43 – Berlin – Lancaster – ED942 – F/S JTC Rhodes
03-Sep-43 – Berlin – Lancaster – ED942 – F/S JTC Rhodes
05-Sep-43 – Mannheim – Lancaster – ED942 – F/S JTC Rhodes
06-Sep-43 – Munich – Lancaster – ED942 – F/S JTC Rhodes
03-Oct-43 – Kassel – Lancaster – JB319 – W/O JTC Rhodes
04-Oct-43 – Ludwigshafen/Diversion – Lancaster – JB276 – W/O JTC Rhodes
07-Oct-43 – Stuttgart – Lancaster – ED942 – W/O JTC Rhodes
08-Oct-43 – Hanover – Lancaster – ED942 – W/O JTC Rhodes
18-Oct-43 – Hanover – Lancaster – JB376 – W/O JTC Rhodes
20-Oct-43 – Leipzig – Lancaster – JB376 – W/O JTC Rhodes
22-Oct-43 – Kassel – Lancaster – JB376 – W/O JTC Rhodes – FTR - Night fighter victim. Crashed near Holzhausen, Germany.
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W/O John Thomas Campbell Rhodes RAF – Pilot - 32 – 103 Sqn - Adopted son of Laura W. Rhodes, of Sonning Common, Berkshire. B.Sc. (Reading) – Hanover War Cemetery, Germany
F/S J Fullerton RAFVR - 103 Sqn – POW – Camps 4B/L1 – POW no 261220
Sgt Jack Hamer RAFVR – Flight Engineer - 103 Sqn - Hanover War Cemetery, Germany
Sgt Frederick Norman MacAuley RAFVR – Navigator - 103 Sqn - Hanover War Cemetery, Germany
Sgt EJ Williams RAFVR - 103 Sqn – POW – Camps 4B/L3 – POW no 261180
Sgt John Paul Williamson RAF – Wireless Operator / Air Gunner - 22 - 103 Sqn - Son of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Williamson; husband of Margaret Gwendoline Williamson of Ipswich, Suffolk - Hanover War Cemetery, Germany
Sgt Joseph Michael Healey RAFVR – Air Gunner - 20 - 103 Sqn – Son of Thomas Vincent and Kathleen Mary Healey of Stafford - Hanover War Cemetery, Germany
F/S Humphrey Peter Robinson RAFVR – Air Gunner - 103 Sqn - Hanover War Cemetery, Germany
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22-Oct-43 - Kassel
103 Squadron detailed 17 aircraft for this attack on the German city of Kassel. There was no cloud over the target and the raid appears to have been most successful. Reconnaissance photos show the fires still burning 8 days after the raid. Flak was slight to moderate but fighter and searchlights were very active. F/S Nicholls abandoned his mission due to navigator becoming sick. The Wireless Operator took over and navigated the aircraft back on Gee fixes till landfall was made. F/O Morgan returned early due to Navigator having oxygen failure. F/S West returned early due to oxygen failure at the Dutch coast. F/S Rathbone landed at Thorps Abbott due to fuel shortage and S/L Wood, W/O Rhodes and W/O Lee failed to return. All other aircraft returned to base.
For this attack on Kassel Bomber Command detailed a total of 569 aircraft - 322 Lancasters, 247 Halifaxes. The German controller was again successful in assessing the target and 43 aircraft - 25 Halifaxes, 18 Lancasters - were lost, 7.6 per cent of the force.
The initial 'blind' H2S marking overshot the target but 8 out of the 9 'visual' markers correctly identified the centre of Kassel and placed their markers accurately. Although German decoy markers may have drawn off part of the bomber force, the main raid was exceptionally accurate and concentrated. The result was the most devastating attack on a Nazi city since the firestorm raid on Hamburg in July and the results at Kassel would not be exceeded again until well into 1944. The fires were so concentrated that there was a firestorm, although not as extensive as the Hamburg one.
The Kassel Railway system was severely hit as were the 3 Henschel factories which were manufacturing the V1 flying bombs and this proved a serious set back to the introduction of this weapon.
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Lancaster – JB376
This machine was lost on its 3rd trip all with the Rhodes crew. See below:-
18-Oct-43 – Hanover – Lancaster – JB376 – W/O JTC Rhodes
20-Oct-43 – Leipzig – Lancaster – JB376 – W/O JTC Rhodes
22-Oct-43 – Kassel – Lancaster – JB376 – W/O JTC Rhodes – FTR - Night fighter victim. Crashed near Holzhausen, Germany.
Item compiled by David Fell.
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