R A Cruikshank - 7 Squadron Stirling crew help needed.

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Davenport7
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R A Cruikshank - 7 Squadron Stirling crew help needed.

Post by Davenport7 »

All,

I am trying to obtain information on a particular crew of 7 Squadron.

The pilot was R A Cruikshank DFC & Bar. Other crew members listed below:

R S Havery
K F Wilkinson
G W Smith
S A Hives
J McIntyre
E Barrett

Unfortunatley all of the above died on the 2/3rd May 1941, when there Stirling (N6012) was circling Oakington to approach to land when their plane was attacked by a lone Ju88 and Cruikshank attempted to bring the bomber low but hit trees and the plane crashed at Dry Drayton, SW of Oakington.

**Assistance required**

Now my Grandfather Leslie Ernest James Davenport was with Squadron 7 and he always spoke about his previous crew he went on missions with had all been killed after a Ju88 had attacked the Stirling on the way into landing.

Now I would like to find out the following:

Cruikshanks earlier raids (pre may 1941) / operational records
List of the crews on them raids
Any pictures of Cruikshank and his crews

I would love to see if there are any pictures of my grandfather with this crew or whether this was his previous crew that he always spoke about.

I did attempt to go to Kew Archives but could not find anything pre June 1941 for Squadron 7 in the AIR records.

Can anyone assist me with my research??

Ian
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K4KittyCrew
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Re: R A Cruikshank - 7 Squadron Stirling crew help needed.

Post by K4KittyCrew »

Hi Ian,

The only details that I've found so far, come from 'The Stirling Story' by Micheal JF Bowyer, page 61 ......

Footnote - This book seems to have more details and photos on 7 Sqn, then any other, it would be a must
you Ian if you don't already have it.

Regards,
John
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Oggie2620
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Re: R A Cruikshank - 7 Squadron Stirling crew help needed.

Post by Oggie2620 »

Hi

Have you requested his service records from Cranwell? If your grandmother is still alive she can request them for free but other than that his nearest surviving relative can pay £30 and get them. Apparently it is worth it though it takes some time. Have you found 7 Sqns Assn as you might be able to go and talk to some veterans who actually knew him. I am a member of 75 (NZ) Sqns and it is fascinating listening to their stories.

Dee
jamesinnewcastle
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Re: R A Cruikshank - 7 Squadron Stirling crew help needed.

Post by jamesinnewcastle »

Hi

Just a correction - All the crew survived the crash at Stambourne - it was a month later that they were all killed, the Pilot having married just a week before - in that crash the aircraft landed up on its back. Perhaps the Author is confusing the two. I've spoken to a Stambourne resident whose Mother spoke to the crew after the crash. Here is a quote from her:

"My mother says that the pilot says he came down on the dummy airfield as he thought it was Ridgewell he was heading for. Apparently if the ground crew on the airfield heard a plane approaching in trouble they flashed up their lights. The dummy airfield used to flash their lights on a regular basis to lure the enemy planes. The pilot mistook the dummy lights for Ridgewell airfield. Apparently nobody can understand how he missed the church tower he was so low.

There was a tremendous row about the lights but the two men in charge of the dummy airfield had their orders and carried them out to the letter. It led to a change in orders.

The men put in charge of guarding the site stayed at the Red Lion pub. My mother says try looking in the Halstead Gazette archives as they might have something."

James
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