Personnel Index - Detail
19/20 February, 1944; LEIPZIG:
Bomber Command put up over 800 aircraft, but this time as they crossed the Dutch coast the German night-fighters were waiting, and a running battle ensued all the way to the target. False wind forecasts had many aircraft reaching the target area too early.
The losses suffered by Bomber Command on this night were horrendous -78 aircraft and crews, which included 44 Lancasters and 34 Halifaxes; this figure represented 9.5 per cent of the force. The Halifax IIs and Vs would never be asked to operate over Germany again following this raid.
The squadron started arriving back over Fiskerton just before breakfast on Sunday morning. U-Uncle was the last to land at 07.40hrs, and it soon became clear that two aircraft were missing: Of these, P/O McKenzie (ND516), pilot of N-Nan, along with the bomb aimer and navigator survived after being brought down over Germany, but sadly the remainder of the crew perished and are buried together in the Berlin War cemetery.
Lancaster ND516 (EA-N)
P/O A.J. McKenzie Pilot (P.o.W.)
Sgt W.S. Purdie F/E (Killed)
Sgt C.T. Critchley NAV (P.o.W.)
F/S G. Hobby W/AG (Killed)
Sgt K.A. Archer A/G (Killed)
Sgt W T. Stevens B/A (P.o.W.)
Sgt A.C. Grems A/G (Killed)
Crew on their 4th operation