Stirlings near Ipswich, mid Apr, 1944?
Posted: Mon Jun 03, 2019 7:11 am
Thank you for accepting me as a new member. I cannot say that I will be able to contribute more to this forum than I shall take from it. My connection to WWII was my father, who flew with the 8th USAAF out of Hethel during Apr/May 1944. He was a navigator in B-24s and flew 19 missions with the Leininger crew. I and my brother have his well penned memoir that covers training, combat, POW, and the endkampf in Bavaria. What it made plain was that his view of events always had a restricted one. I am attempting to illuminate his narrative with the increased access to details not available when he wrote it.
Q: Did the RAF have a Stirling unit based near Ipswich in Apr 1944?
My search has come up inconclusive. Dad wrote that on 21 Apr '44 his crew ferried another south to pick up their B-24 that made a forced landing at an RAF base near Ipswich due to battle damage. It had been repaired enough for the return trip. He said they flew 1/2 hour south, which is about right. While the pilots were sorting out the paperwork, dad and the others took a close look at the flight line. A friendly RAF flight officer gave them a close look at one of the Short Stirlings.
RAF Bentwaters was the obvious choice with its designation as an emergency airfield. The other is Wattisham. But did they have Stirlings? My experience so far with dad's writings is that he gets the big things correct and any 'license' taken, is with the insignificant details, e.g. the flight officer's name. A review of his individual flight record shows that he logged 2:45 non-mission combat hours on the 21st in a B-24D. This flight time seems adequate for a flight to Manston down in Kent.... but Stirlings?
Anybody have any thoughts?
Q: Did the RAF have a Stirling unit based near Ipswich in Apr 1944?
My search has come up inconclusive. Dad wrote that on 21 Apr '44 his crew ferried another south to pick up their B-24 that made a forced landing at an RAF base near Ipswich due to battle damage. It had been repaired enough for the return trip. He said they flew 1/2 hour south, which is about right. While the pilots were sorting out the paperwork, dad and the others took a close look at the flight line. A friendly RAF flight officer gave them a close look at one of the Short Stirlings.
RAF Bentwaters was the obvious choice with its designation as an emergency airfield. The other is Wattisham. But did they have Stirlings? My experience so far with dad's writings is that he gets the big things correct and any 'license' taken, is with the insignificant details, e.g. the flight officer's name. A review of his individual flight record shows that he logged 2:45 non-mission combat hours on the 21st in a B-24D. This flight time seems adequate for a flight to Manston down in Kent.... but Stirlings?
Anybody have any thoughts?