W/C Oliver Godfrey DFC RAF and crew – 103 Squadron - RAF Elsham Wolds – 1941/42
Failed to Return – 22/23rd June 1942 – Vickers Wellington IC – DV818 – Op Emden.
Oliver Godfrey ( pictured above ) was a pre war RAF regular pilot of great experience. I seem to recall he had served in India and the Middle East although those details are sadly lost to me now.
He was posted to 103 Squadron from 12 OTU at Benson on the 22nd September 1941 as Flight Commander and flew 1 operation as co-pilot with F/O Peck and crew on the 12/13th October.
He then took over his own crew and flew the following operations.
16-Oct-41 – Dunkirk – Wellington – R1395 – S/L O Godfrey
22-Oct-41 - Le Havre – Wellington – R1395 – S/L O Godfrey
31-Oct-41 – Dunkirk – Wellington – R1395 – S/L O Godfrey
26-Nov-41 – Emden – Wellington – Z1152 – S/L O Godfrey
06-Jan-42 – Brest – Wellington – Z1152 – S/L O Godfrey
09-Jan-42 – Brest – Wellington – Z1152 – S/L O Godfrey - Unable to locate primary. Returned to base with bombs
10-Jan-42 – Wilhelmshaven – Wellington – Z1152 – S/L O Godfrey - ASI U/S outbound. Landed away.
21-Jan-42 – Bremen – Wellington – Z1152 – S/L O Godfrey - DNTO
25-Jan-42 – Brest – Wellington – Z1152 – S/L O Godfrey
21-Feb-42 - Mannheim and others – Wellington – Z1152 – S/L O Godfrey - Landed at Manston owing to fuel shortage.
03-Mar-42 – Paris – Wellington – Z1152 – S/L O Godfrey
09-Mar-42 – Essen – Wellington – Z1152 – S/L O Godfrey
10-Mar-42 – Essen – Wellington – DV596 – S/L O Godfrey - Unable to pin point target due to ground haze. Bombed on D/R position where fires were burning
25-Mar-42 – Essen – Wellington – Z1152 – S/L O Godfrey
27-Mar-42 - St Nazaire – Wellington – Z1152 – S/L O Godfrey - Took off from Pershore
10-Apr-42 – Essen – Wellington – Z1152 – S/L O Godfrey
14-Apr-42 – Dortmund – Wellington – DV699 – S/L O Godfrey - S engine U/S over target. Landed at West Malling
18-Apr-42 – Hamburg – Wellington – DV697 – S/L O Godfrey
23-Apr-42 – Rostock – Wellington – Z1152 – S/L O Godfrey
25-Apr-42 – Rostock – Wellington – DV596 – S/L O Godfrey
29-Apr-42 - Paris/ Gennevilliers – Wellington – Z1152 – S/L O Godfrey
19-May-42 – Mannheim – Wellington – Z1152 – S/L O Godfrey
29-May-42 - Paris/ Gennevilliers – Wellington – Z1152 – S/L O Godfrey - Diverted to Abingdon due to bad weather at base
30-May-42 – Cologne – Wellington – Z1152 – S/L O Godfrey
01-Jun-42 – Essen – Wellington – Z1152 – S/L O Godfrey – ER - Misinterpretation of recall signal
02-Jun-42 – Essen – Wellington – Z1152 – S/L O Godfrey - Hit by flak. Damaged nacelle tank, wing and tailplane.
05-Jun-42 – Essen – Wellington – Z1152 – S/L O Godfrey
06-Jun-42 – Emden – Wellington – Z1152 – S/L O Godfrey
22-Jun-42 – Emden – Wellington – DV818 – S/L O Godfrey – FTR - Crashed in sea off Dutch coast.
Godfrey must have been lost on the last operation of his tour or the penultimate
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W/C Oliver Godfrey DFC RAF - Pilot - 26 - 103 Sqn - Son of Charles and Patience Godfrey, of Hermitage, Berkshire - Wierhuizan Protestant Cemetery, Netherlands
F/S Vincent John Gallogly RAAF – 23 – 103 Sqn - Son of Daniel and Mary Gallogly of Albion, Queensland, Australia - Runnymede Memorial
P/O Arthur Cyril Reid Downward RAFVR – 30 – 103 Sqn - Son of Arthur Edward and Lucy Mable Downward; husband of Norah Downward of Ewell, Surrey - Runnymede Memorial
F/S Henry Gordon Edwards RAF – 103 Sqn - Son of David John and Bessie Edwards; husband of Joan Kathleen Edwards, of Altrincham, Cheshire - Runnymede Memorial
Sgt James Wallace Porteous RAFVR – 19 – 103 Sqn - Son of Robert and Barbara Porteous, of Musselburgh, Midlothian - Sage WC
Sgt Frank Edward Barnett RAFVR ( Pictured below ) – Air Gunner – POW – Camp Stalag Kopernikus - PoW No 302
Sgt FE Barnett RAFVR
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22-Jun-42 – Emden
103 Squadron detailed 15 aircraft for this attack on the German port of Emden. Visibility was good with slight ground haze. There was little or no cloud to and from the target. Crews were able to identify the target and results were considered satisfactory. 2 aircraft returned early due to mechanical issues and W/C Godfrey and crew failed to return.
For this attack on Emden Bomber Command detailed 227 aircraft - 144 Wellingtons, 38 Stirlings, 26 Halifaxes, 11 Lancasters, 8 Hampdens. 6 aircraft - 4 Wellingtons, 1 Lancaster, 1 Stirling – lost.196 crews claimed good bombing results but decoy fires are believed to have drawn off many bombs. Emden reports: 50 houses destroyed, 100 damaged, damage in the harbour (no details available), 6 people killed and 40 injured.
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Wellington DV818
This machine flew the following operations.
19-May-42 – Mannheim – Wellington – DV818 – F/S GH Gosman
30-May-42 – Cologne – Wellington – DV818 – F/S GH Gosman
01-Jun-42 – Essen – Wellington – DV818 – F/S GH Gosman
05-Jun-42 – Essen – Wellington – DV818 – F/S GH Gosman – ER - S engine overheating
06-Jun-42 – Emden – Wellington – DV818 – F/S GH Gosman
08-Jun-42 – Essen – Wellington – DV818 – F/S GH Gosman
19-Jun-42 - Ameland/Dutch coast – Wellington – DV818 – Sgt LE Moriarty RCAF
19-Jun-42 – Emden – Wellington – DV818 – Sgt LE Moriarty RCAF
22-Jun-42 – Emden – Wellington – DV818 – S/L O Godfrey – FTR - Crashed in sea off Dutch coast. No details on record.
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Sgt Frank Edward Barnett
ID photo of Ted Barnett taken on his repatriation to the UK.
Ted Barnett lost a finger at the time this crew were lost. He participated in the Long March, liberated on the 2 May 1945 and returned to the UK on the 11 May 1945
Item compiled by David Fell with photos from my archive and the Barnett family
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