Hi,

My father was Flt Allan Ball DFC. He was 77 Squadron then 35 Squadron, when he volunteered for Pathfinders. He was wireless operator, and  used to fly mostly with "Dixie" Dean. His plane marking was TL-M for mother.

He unfortunately stood in for another who was ill, on a Berlin raid on 23rd August 1943. His plane was shot down and he was very badly wounded with mainly head injuries. He was taken to hospital in Germany then sent to Stalagluft 3 (Sagan). He was repatriated on the Gripsholme from Sweden in 1944 due to his injuries. He then went to East Grinstead to be a "Guinea Pig" for plastic surgery.

He had always kept his interest in the pathfinders alive and was a member of the Pathfinder Association Council. We used to attend the 35 Squadron reunions at Offord every year, and the Pathfinder Sundays at RAF Wyton.

I have all kinds of things that my father kept, all the Pathfinder "Marker" magazines, the reunion of Guinea Pigs in Canada etc.

I am currently trying to put it all together. There is the most beautiful stained glass window in the church at Offord and the squadron flag has it's home there in the church since it was finally disbanded. I went out to the airfield and talked to the farmer who lives in the control tower. There are still a few buildings left and a bit of the airstrip!

Juliet

amrmeaner wrote:

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My uncle Douglas Ferguson Fyfe was in the 35 Squadron 8PFF in 1943. He was an Australian rear gunner and was award the DFC. He completed 60 missions.
I would like to find photos of a Lancaster he flew whcih I can use as abasis to make a 1/48th model.
I am having a lot of diffiuculties find ORBs or other individual flight records so I can identify a plane he did a mission in.
Aprricate any information or ideas on where to search.

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You could try the RAF museum archive in Hendon, London. Here is a link to the site:

http://www.rafmuseum.org.uk/research/

They hold all the records of all aircrew and the planes which they flew in.

Re. 35 Sqdn;

 Juliet,

Your father initially operated with W/C (Later G/C) Robinson on 35 before joining Deans crew. I only looked @ the records for 43 and 44 this time but, your Dad was on ops with 35 as early as Jan. 43, Ill look later in the 1942 records to see who he flew with then.

This is the time period which I had many friends on 35, many of whom flew along side your father. He must have been @ the top of his trade in order to crew with the C/O and a flight commander (later to become the C/O, Dean)?

F/O Fyfe:

The 35 ORBs show Douglas Fyfe posted to the sqdn. from #1484 B&G on  Oct.5,43. His rank tells me that he was most likely beginning his 2^nd (or 3^rd) tour? He wasnt on 35 prior to this in 43, Ill need to look further back to see if he indeed did his 1^st (or 2^nd) tour with 35?

Fyfe then crews up with Sgt. John and crew  and operates on Halifax 2s, then 3s for a short time, before converting to Lancs in March, 44.

Note: you're OK with the Lanc model! ;0)

Heres in interesting bit: W/O John & crew were a fairly experienced lot when Pathfindersons father began his ops on 35 (Kornegays crew).

They allowed Kornegays crew to fly their personal kite (ND928 TL-Q) on occasion!!

A final sad bit of info:

Both  the Fyfe & Grantham crews were on the ill fated Villeneuve St.George op on July 4, 44 when 35 lost both its flight commanders, including S/L Alec Cranswick..the best of the best.

Cheers.

Paul

Hi Lizzie,

My father flew as w/op in 35 squadron mid 1944-1945. I live only a few mils from Graveley and have photos of the last few remaining buildings at copmmunal site 4, to the North of the airfield.

I have also been collecting copies of 'the Marker'.

If you or any interested part wants copies of photos, or the magazine , contact me at prherod"at"waitrose.com

Paul

Hi John,

           The aircraft concerned, was a Lancaster, serial number PB366, TL-S, tasked for operations to Cologne, which crashed just after take from Graveley on the afternoon of 24th Dec 44. All on board were killed........

F/O  A.T Kenyon.

Sgt  L. Williams.

Sgt  A. Thomas.

F/Sgt  A.H. Cousins.

F/Sgt  C.L. Blundell.

Sgt  C.A. Winter.

Sgt  R.F.A Yallop.

I have a copy of the 35sqdn Operations Record Book for this period, and if you can let me have your email address via the whiteboard in my profile, i'll get back to you with any information on previous operations flown by this crew.

Alan.

For some reason, i am unable to edit my previous post, so here's some more.

ORB does not record postings of NCO's into the sqdn, only Officers. It does record Kenyon as coming in from 102sqdn on 12/11/44, so it's likely that the crew came in with him on that date. Only one previous op for this crew since being posted in, Ludwigshafen, 15th december.

Hi Julie,

Whilst I am only a stones throw from the Offords, I have been left with some difficulties after a stroke, so cannot make the event at the Church. I have tried to contact the organisers but no response. My late father was a w/op with 35 sqn 1944-45.

you can contact me at prherodATwaitrose.com.

All the best

PaulH

Hello  John,

I  would  like  to  contact  you as  I  was  a  young  boy  living  in  Gt.  Paxton  and  witnessed  the  crash  on  24.12.1044.

Regards,

G.  Evan-Hart

This statement would have been made out after his liberation from the pow camp. He would have been asked, among other things, about the circumstances of the loss of the aircraft etc. The attached forms are included in the casualty file of the Aussie on board, R.G. Perrett.

 recordsearch.naa.gov.au/scripts/Imagine.asp?B=1075498  The records are back to front, so start at page 101 and work back through.

Alan.

Regret to advise the death on 14 February 2013 of my brother Roy Frederick Macdonald aged 92 years, who as an air gunner flew 40 operations with 35 Squadron and was shot down on 21 June 1943 after the raid on Krefeld in HR 685.  All the crew survived and were POWs until the end of the war (Tom Lane, George Darling, Peter Jackson, Peter Balsom, Don Alexander, Jimmy Rogers - see Ian Darling's book "Amazing Airmen" ISBN 978-1-55488-424-7).

Funeral service at Bangor crematorium, Friday 1st March, at 2.15 pm.

Messages or recollections to Mrs Flora Figgins, "Eirianallt", Lon Pant-y-Cudyn, Benllech, Anglesey LL74 8UF

Per asthma ad astra.

My father John Graham Walters was a navigator in 35 Squadron, July 1943 to August 1944, surviving the war.  I have a few photos and his logbook, would be happy to share.  His captain was mainly P/O Hardy, but he also flew a handful of missions with Jagger, Berndson, Hausvick, and Honey.

Regards, Jonathan Walters

Kevin, could you send me information on the 35 Squadron book?  My father, John Graham Walters DFM, flew with Jagger on one mission, Berlin Dec. 23 1943.  His logbook notes: "OPS Berlin.  DNCO. Bombed Koblenz. P/I U/S."  I'm happy to share logbook information with anyone researching 35 Squadron (and 158 Squadron, previously).

Contact me at jwalters@norwich.edu  (in US)

Jonathan Walters

Dear PATHFINDERSON,

Do you have an e-mail for contact, regarding your father? I would like to include him on the book-tribute "Brazilians in RAF Service, 39-45".

PLEASE do contact me at: baumgartner_asv@yahoo.com.br

Adriano Silva Baumgartner

Waledijaaz,

Are you answering me or are you also writing about the Brazilians in RAF Service, 1939-45?

What's your real name and contact?

Adriano

I am Pete Chicken an ex WO Flight engineer from 57 sqn and am trying to trace a WO RT Johns who was on 35 Sqn in May 1944.

He later flew with 57 from Nov to the end of the war.  I have the most amazing map he used on a raid on Munich in Dec 1944

to view it go to my facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/One-Night-In-December-1071392396250557/?ref=ts&fref=ts

 If you have any information about him please drop me a line at

p.chicken@btinternet.com

many thanks 

pete

Juliet, please check your Whiteboard for my p.m.  Kind regards, Patrick

Hi Colin. Quite a coincidence for your grandfather and my father. 

My father was on the same raid that your grandfather was shot down on albeit on a Halifax Squadron (578). Shortly after that raid the crew were moved on to 35 Squadron and on the night of 23/24 June 1944 my father was badly wounded in TL-F ND916 (the replacement 'F' to your Grandfather's aircraft). Small world!

Type683

Hi paul

Thank you so much for this infomation this will go a long way to futher our our search for our crew's history.  I would love to get a picture of him do you know if there are any sqn photographs?

Many thanks 

Pete Chicken

Thanks Paul