Personnel Index - Detail
Eric Lee (centre) and Ronald O'Dea (RHS) with Eric's brothers and mother
Image courtesy of Sidney Lee (LHS) and via Ashley Hales
22/23 March, 1944; FRANKFURT:
Frankfurt again, and 49 Squadron managed to get 19 airborne.
The accurate PFF marking and bombing by over 800 aircraft ensured that Frankfurt suffered yet another heavy blow. Diversions had confused the Germans, who at first forecast Hannover as the target, but a few night-fighters did manage to find the bomber stream and 26 Lancasters and 7 Halifaxes failed to return.
Again Fiskerton had suffered losses when two crews were posted missing; F/O Donald Turner (survivor of Chapel-St-Leonards beach crash Nov 43) and crew (except Sgt Velasco A/G who became a PoW) were sadly all killed.
Lancaster ND672 (EA-U)
F/O D.G. Turner Pilot (Killed)
Sgt E. Lee F/E (Killed)
F/S S.J. Upton NAV (Killed)
Sgt L.H. Nightingale W/AG (Killed)
Sgt P. Velasco A/G (P.o.W.)
F/O W. Pearce A/B (Killed)
F/S J.N.E. Bennett RCAF A/G (Killed)
Crew on their 4th operation
This document (which opens in a new window) is a postwar letter from Sgt Velasco to the brother of Sgt Linton Nightingale and is reproduced by kind permission of Ashley Hales who is Sgt Nightingale's nephew.
The original wooden cross for the grave (only five names as Jack Bennett was buried separately and Peter Velasco managed to parachute out.