Personnel Index - Detail

Name
COPE
First Names
Ronald
Rank
Sgt
Service
RAF
Service Number
1086776
Crew Position
Air Gunner
Age
23
Date of Death
17/04/1943
Cemetery
Location

 

 

Photographed by Malcolm Brooke
From the panel at Runnymede
 

The Runnymede image was created by artist Paul Reid using photographs taken by Jo Cockburn and Malcolm Brooke
 

49Sqn Association
 

16/17 April, 1943; PILZEN:

In the light of a full moon, 327 heavy bombers went after the Skoda armaments works. Aircraft from the squadron pressed home their attacks with great determination. Unfortunately the bombing photos brought back, showed the raid to have been a failure, with a large asylum building several miles away being mistaken for the factory. To make matters worse, the cost had been very high; 18 Halifaxes and 18 Lancaster crews failed to return.

F/O Alex Bone and crew on just their 2nd trip had tragically perished in the night and were presumed to have come down in the sea.
It is now known that the Lancaster crashed near Laumersheim in the Rhineland-Palatinate.

Loss info via Colin Cripps (Association Researcher)
Hit by 2./schw. Flak Abt. 636, 4./schw. Flak Abt. 492, 2 & 3./schw. Flak Abt 701, 1. & 3./schw. Flak Abt. 903 and 1.-3./schw. Flak Abt 499. Aircraft exploded in mid-air and hit the ground at Laummersheim at 02.37hrs. Aircraft mis-identified as a Halifax.
 

Lancaster ED427 (EA-O)

F/O A.V. Bone Pilot (Killed)
Sgt R.N.P. Foster F/E (Killed)
Sgt C.W. Yelland NAV (Killed)
Sgt R.C. White WAG (Killed)
Sgt R. Cope A/G (Killed)
Sgt R.J. Rooney B/A (Killed)
P/O B.E. Watt RCAF A/G (Killed)

Crew on their 2nd operation

The documents section has a detailed report on ED427 and her crew,