Stettin
Berlin might have been scrubbed but the next op was to somewhere equally distant and only 75 miles from the German capital - Stettin, of prime importance for Nazi supplies to the Eastern front. It was a marathon 10hrs via Denmark and Sweden, the longest op Fred would be required to fly, taking off at 8.49pm on August 29 and not returning until 6.48am the next morning. The plane was packed with three standard bombs, more than 1,100 incendiaries and 2,154 gallons of fuel, making it highly vulnerable to flak. Thankfully layers of cloud en route offered good cover in a well-moonlit sky.
The Germans threw everything they had at the 402 Lancasters - heavy flak aided by searchlights over the target, high-calibre naval guns and fighters out in force. Radio intercepts were used in a bid to fool pilots, who were required to bomb at 15,000ft. Fred said: "In approaching the area I heard a voice in my ear about advising to bomb at a certain height, and I started to lose height. The bomb-aimer said you are getting too low and this obviously had been a German infiltrating the wavelength to get me in the range of anti-aircraft fire. We quickly retreated skywards."
George said he could always tell how close they were to the target from Fred's breathing heard through the mike. Likewise, he said, Fred told him he could hear his breathing as they left the target. George said: "People ask me, was I scared? Yes. They ask how scared I was. Well, how do you explain to someone how scared you were? On our way to Stettin I saw a Lanc on the starboard side and one on the port side. I looked at one, then the other, and when I looked back the other had been shot down. He had got coned in searchlights, so consequently it was a real target. That shakes you a little bit." The raid was a success with fierce fires sending smoke 26,000ft into the night sky.
The last op of August was part of a mass attack by 601 aircraft on nine sites in northern France where the Germans were believed to be storing V-2 rockets. Easy's sortie was through heavy predicted flak to the medieval city of St Riquier in Picardie and the crew reported that several sticks of their bombs appeared to hit the target.
Officers were entitled to be issued with revolvers but Fred never wore one. "We were advised it was no use showing resistance if you had to bail out. If you were seen with a revolver they would shoot you. A lot of crews didn't bother to arm themselves. You either run and hope to be skilful in your hiding or surrender." He gave no thought as to what he would do if shot down. "I didn't think about it. I think that's defeatism. You solve the matter on the day and not premeditate about anything. You hope it never happens."
"When hundreds of aircraft take off in the area and they're all flying off in one direction you have got to keep a sharp look-out. It is a constant visual. We were told to try to keep in a stream but at times you don't know where you are. It was difficult to see other planes at night: there were no lights on. You might be solitary, you might have drifted away - that's up to the navigator. You were amongst a crowd at times and you had to make sure they weren't drifting into you or you into them. In a stream you got them all huddled together. The only time you could sense being near another aircraft was if you got into the backdraft of his engines. If it's close enough it will probably upset the balance of the aircraft you are flying and churn up the airstream."
Clair recalled one time when Fred asked the mid-upper gunner to keep a sharp look-out above, because of the potential danger from another Lancaster overhead. When Hughie drawled, "Skipper, their bomb doors are open", swift evasive action was taken.
However Fred has no doubt the British way was better than the American system of formation flying. "It is a constant strain for a pilot to be in formation all the time. Formation is a drain on your capability." He had no preference about flying by day or night - for him the brevity of daylight sorties to France outweighed the greater risk of being seen. "There were more taking part over France. On night flights you flew long distances and could see nothing except for flashes at times. There was a different feeling to it. Sometimes it was nice to get back in three hours."
Easy was among 675 bombers that raided six airfields in southern Holland in daylight on September 3, the crew's particular target Eindhoven. This was an older airfield surrounded by homes and crews were therefore warned to be precise about their bombing.
Approaching the airfield Easy was hemmed in by dozens of other planes. Fred said: "I couldn't see the target ahead of me - it might have been all the dirt and dust. We were getting so close to an aircraft and the bomb-aimer wanted me closer still: he wasn't satisfied and I think he asked me to move to port. But there was such a bunch around me that I couldn't turn left, I couldn't turn right, I couldn't climb. We were surrounded and we had to go round again." This meant swinging to starboard with all the others as they left the target area but completing a circle to make the return. "I had to be very careful where I was flying. You had to keep your eyes open and your head turning and checking all the time. You took your chances: the aircraft behind us would have come in at a different height." Easy could then have been at risk of getting hit by bombs from aircraft above. George remarked "Good prang" in his logbook, while Clair recorded "Excellent bombing and picture".
Repeated raids followed on German troops - holding out in Le Havre - who had been bypassed by Allied ground forces. Easy made three consecutive attacks on the town, one of 348 bombers on September 5, 333 on the 8th and 992 on the 10th. Crews reported heavy flak on the first run during which Fred had to orbit until red target indicators were dropped seven minutes late by pathfinders. Canadian troops were only 3,000 yards away but bombing was concentrated on the aiming point, and Bill noted "very good prang".
Easy braved intense flak on the 8th but to no avail, since bad weather forced crews to return without bombing. At debriefing Fred said he orbited for ten minutes before the sortie was "abortive on masterbomber's instructions". The final attack, on the 10th, despite being the largest, narrowly missed six gun batteries and instead heavily damaged businesses and homes.
The Germans threw everything they had at the 402 Lancasters - heavy flak aided by searchlights over the target, high-calibre naval guns and fighters out in force. Radio intercepts were used in a bid to fool pilots, who were required to bomb at 15,000ft. Fred said: "In approaching the area I heard a voice in my ear about advising to bomb at a certain height, and I started to lose height. The bomb-aimer said you are getting too low and this obviously had been a German infiltrating the wavelength to get me in the range of anti-aircraft fire. We quickly retreated skywards."
George said he could always tell how close they were to the target from Fred's breathing heard through the mike. Likewise, he said, Fred told him he could hear his breathing as they left the target. George said: "People ask me, was I scared? Yes. They ask how scared I was. Well, how do you explain to someone how scared you were? On our way to Stettin I saw a Lanc on the starboard side and one on the port side. I looked at one, then the other, and when I looked back the other had been shot down. He had got coned in searchlights, so consequently it was a real target. That shakes you a little bit." The raid was a success with fierce fires sending smoke 26,000ft into the night sky.
The last op of August was part of a mass attack by 601 aircraft on nine sites in northern France where the Germans were believed to be storing V-2 rockets. Easy's sortie was through heavy predicted flak to the medieval city of St Riquier in Picardie and the crew reported that several sticks of their bombs appeared to hit the target.
Officers were entitled to be issued with revolvers but Fred never wore one. "We were advised it was no use showing resistance if you had to bail out. If you were seen with a revolver they would shoot you. A lot of crews didn't bother to arm themselves. You either run and hope to be skilful in your hiding or surrender." He gave no thought as to what he would do if shot down. "I didn't think about it. I think that's defeatism. You solve the matter on the day and not premeditate about anything. You hope it never happens."
George on Easy's nose, Fred, Bill and Dave (standing) in the cockpit and Clair and Hughie on the right, photographed by Lome.
One danger of mass night bombing raids was mid-air collisions, particularly as pilots strove to keep together to avoid being picked off by enemy fighters. Fred said: "At night-time it was most noticeable. Before we got to the coast in some cases I saw a few of them - great explosions in the air. You made a quick note in your mind but how far away wasn't too important as long as it wasn't too close to my aircraft.""When hundreds of aircraft take off in the area and they're all flying off in one direction you have got to keep a sharp look-out. It is a constant visual. We were told to try to keep in a stream but at times you don't know where you are. It was difficult to see other planes at night: there were no lights on. You might be solitary, you might have drifted away - that's up to the navigator. You were amongst a crowd at times and you had to make sure they weren't drifting into you or you into them. In a stream you got them all huddled together. The only time you could sense being near another aircraft was if you got into the backdraft of his engines. If it's close enough it will probably upset the balance of the aircraft you are flying and churn up the airstream."
Clair recalled one time when Fred asked the mid-upper gunner to keep a sharp look-out above, because of the potential danger from another Lancaster overhead. When Hughie drawled, "Skipper, their bomb doors are open", swift evasive action was taken.
However Fred has no doubt the British way was better than the American system of formation flying. "It is a constant strain for a pilot to be in formation all the time. Formation is a drain on your capability." He had no preference about flying by day or night - for him the brevity of daylight sorties to France outweighed the greater risk of being seen. "There were more taking part over France. On night flights you flew long distances and could see nothing except for flashes at times. There was a different feeling to it. Sometimes it was nice to get back in three hours."
Easy was among 675 bombers that raided six airfields in southern Holland in daylight on September 3, the crew's particular target Eindhoven. This was an older airfield surrounded by homes and crews were therefore warned to be precise about their bombing.
Approaching the airfield Easy was hemmed in by dozens of other planes. Fred said: "I couldn't see the target ahead of me - it might have been all the dirt and dust. We were getting so close to an aircraft and the bomb-aimer wanted me closer still: he wasn't satisfied and I think he asked me to move to port. But there was such a bunch around me that I couldn't turn left, I couldn't turn right, I couldn't climb. We were surrounded and we had to go round again." This meant swinging to starboard with all the others as they left the target area but completing a circle to make the return. "I had to be very careful where I was flying. You had to keep your eyes open and your head turning and checking all the time. You took your chances: the aircraft behind us would have come in at a different height." Easy could then have been at risk of getting hit by bombs from aircraft above. George remarked "Good prang" in his logbook, while Clair recorded "Excellent bombing and picture".
Repeated raids followed on German troops - holding out in Le Havre - who had been bypassed by Allied ground forces. Easy made three consecutive attacks on the town, one of 348 bombers on September 5, 333 on the 8th and 992 on the 10th. Crews reported heavy flak on the first run during which Fred had to orbit until red target indicators were dropped seven minutes late by pathfinders. Canadian troops were only 3,000 yards away but bombing was concentrated on the aiming point, and Bill noted "very good prang".
Easy braved intense flak on the 8th but to no avail, since bad weather forced crews to return without bombing. At debriefing Fred said he orbited for ten minutes before the sortie was "abortive on masterbomber's instructions". The final attack, on the 10th, despite being the largest, narrowly missed six gun batteries and instead heavily damaged businesses and homes.
Easy and ground crew: Sergeant R Green (rear turret); standing, left to right: leading aircraftman Alf Rowland, S Scutto, Charlie Abbery; front: G Coolham, A Brown, unknown.
