William Shepherd Button DFC RAFVR and crew - 576 Squadron - 1944/45 - 170207
This crew were posted to 576 Squadron at RAF Elsham Wolds on the 12th August 1944. They completed a long tour of operations in April 1945 which for an unknown reason had a gap from the end of December 1944 to mid March 1945. Possibly due to illness of the pilot but who knows.
Button's tour was as follows :-
26/08/1944 - Kiel - LM122 – P/O WS Button
29/08/1944 - Stettin - LM651 - P/O WS Button
31/08/1944 - Agenville - ME735 - P/O WS Button
03/09/1944 - Eindhoven - LM122 - F/O WS Button
05/09/1944 - Le Havre - LM651 - F/O WS Button
08/09/1944 - Le Havre - LM651 - F/O WS Button
10/09/1944 - Le Havre - LM651 - F/O WS Button
12/09/1944 - Frankfurt - LM651 - F/O WS Button
15/09/1944 - Oslo, Kattegat and River Elbe - LM651 - F/O WS Button
20/09/1944 - Calais - LM651 - F/O WS Button
23/09/1944 - Neuss - LM651 - F/O WS Button
24/09/1944 - Calais - LM651 - F/O WS Button – Air Gunner wounded and passed away in hospital on the 29th September 1944. He was replaced by Sgt R Loughrey. See below
15/10/1944 - Wilhelmshafen - LM651 - F/O WS Button
22/10/1944 - Essen - LM651 - F/O WS Button
30/10/1944 - Cologne - LM651 - F/O WS Button – Early return – Port outer engine cut and caught fire.
02/11/1944 - Dusseldorf - LM651 - F/O WS Button – Early return - Port inner and starboard inner engines unserviceable
04/11/1944 - Bochum - LM294 - F/O WS Button - Combat with night fighter. JU 88. Mid upper returned fire and enemy aircraft broke off.
06/11/1944 - Gelsenkirchen - LM651 - F/O WS Button
16/11/1944 - Duren - ME735 - F/O WS Button
18/11/1944 - Wanne Eikel - LM651 - F/O WS Button – Damaged by flak. Fractured undercarriage on landing at diversionary airfield, Great Ashfield, USAAF, in very bad weather. Aircraft struck off charge.
27/11/1944 - Freiburg - PD271 - F/O WS Button
06/12/1944 - Leuna - NG273 - F/O WS Button
12/12/1944 - Essen - NG273 - F/O WS Button
15/12/1944 - Ludswighafen/Oppau - NG273 - F/O WS Button
27/12/1944 - Rheydt - NG273 - F/O WS Button
16/03/1945 - Nuremberg - NN806 - F/O WS Button
18/03/1945 - Hanau - NN806 - F/O WS Button
21/03/1945 - Bremen - NN806 - F/O WS Button
24/03/1945 - Dortmund - NN806 - F/O WS Button
31/03/1945 - Hamburg - NN806 - F/O WS Button
09/04/1945 - Kiel - NN806 - F/O WS Button
10/04/1945 - Plauen - NN806 - F/O WS Button
Front - L to R - Sgt R Loughrey, Air Gunner, F/S J H Brown, Wireless Op, P/O T D Beecroft, Air Bomber, Sgt R Hislop, Engineer, F/O C W Langley, Navigator, Back in Rear Turret - Sgt J K James
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F/O Button was awarded a DFC which was gazetted 16th November 1945. In December 1955 he was noted as in the London Gazette as appointed to the Royal Canadian Auxiliary Air Force so it appears he has emigrated about this time
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F/S John Douglas McGowan RCAF - ( pictured below ) - Air Gunner - 576 Sqn - Brookwood Cemetery, Surrey - Wounded on 24th September and passed away in hospital on the 29th September 1944.
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Sgt Robert Loughrey RAFVR.
Robert Loughrey, aged 24, flew 18 operations with 626 Squadron at Wickenby as an Air Gunner. His 18th was on the 10th September 1944 to Le Havre. He was then posted to 576 Squadron at Fiskerton and joined Button's crew as a replacement for F/S J D McGowan RCAF. He flew with Button's crew until the 27th December 1944 and then flew one operation each with W/C B D Sellick and F/L Crowther on the 1st February 1945 and the 3rd February 1945 respectively when he completed his tour.
When the Button crew resumed their tour on the 16th March 1945 to Nuremburg Sgt Loughrey was replaced by F/S S D Lloyd.
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Item compiled by David Fell with photos from my archive and the Canadian Virtual War Museum. Thanks to Mr A Loughrey for the second crew photo and interesting background info.
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