Short Stirling & RAF Bomber Command Forum

Hi everyone. I am from New Zealand and I am very involved with recording and sharing the stories of our WWII veterans, including those who served with RAF Bomber Command. I own and run the Wings Over New Zealand Aviation Forum at http://rnzaf.proboards.com and I produce the Wings Over New Zealand Show aviation podcast, an audio series recording stories of New Zealanders (and others) involved with aviation past and present. These are free to download and listen to, and to keep.

Some WONZ Show episodes that Bomber Command fans would appreciate include the following:

• Tony Iveson DFC
http://www.cambridgeairforce.org.nz/WON ... -ceremony/

• Peter Wheeler (Chief Executive of the New Zealand Bomber Command Association)
http://www.cambridgeairforce.org.nz/WON ... the-nzbca/

• The New Zealand Lancaster Story
http://www.cambridgeairforce.org.nz/WON ... ter-story/

• The Amiens Prison Raid 70th Anniversary
http://www.cambridgeairforce.org.nz/WON ... y-special/

• Max Lambert Author of 'Night After Night'
http://www.cambridgeairforce.org.nz/WON ... x-lambert/

• The New Zealand Bomber Command Commemoration 2014
http://www.cambridgeairforce.org.nz/WON ... emoration/

• Unveiling The Captain's Fancy New nose art on the New Zealand Lancaster
http://www.cambridgeairforce.org.nz/WON ... n's-fancy/

• Tom Horton DSO, DFC* pff
http://www.cambridgeairforce.org.nz/WON ... o-dfc-pff/

• Les Munro Part One
http://www.cambridgeairforce.org.nz/WON ... -part-one/

• Les Munro Part Two
http://www.cambridgeairforce.org.nz/WON ... -part-two/

• Bomber Command Veterans at the WONZ Forum Meet
http://www.cambridgeairforce.org.nz/WON ... -veterans/

• Ron Noice - Pathfinder
http://www.cambridgeairforce.org.nz/WON ... ron-noice/

• Ake Ake Kia Kaha - The No. 75 Squadron Story - Part One: The Wellingtons
http://www.cambridgeairforce.org.nz/WON ... ron-story/

• Doug Smith DFC
http://www.cambridgeairforce.org.nz/WON ... smith-dfc/

• The Bomber Command Commemoration Service 2016
http://www.cambridgeairforce.org.nz/WON ... vice-2016/

Also I have recently made a few short films for the New Zealand Bomber Command Association's Facebook Page which I co-manage with Peter Wheeler

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=huzJ_5Da2mM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwIAQgjBIpg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQmaiukpNRc

Welcome to our friendly forum, Dave.
Great to have you company and knowledge on board.
Cheers,
John

Many thanks John.

Hello and welcome, Dave. Many thanks for the links, I'll browse through them in slower time.
I look forward to seeing you in the discussions!

Richard

Dave,
My fathers' pilot, Joe Lennon and Navigator, Bruce Reece were both from New Zealand.
I have the crews' ORB's as listed here but without doing any major searches, I'd welcome any further details, if available.
Ie: Could they have served with another crew afterwards? ............... or did they, like most Anzac crews, return home on the completion of their tour.
Cheers,
John
viewtopic.php?f=11&t=1439

Thanks for the welcome Richard.

John, most of the aircrew members I have come across did not come straight home after one tour, they were usually 'screened'and became instructors, service pilots or took on some other role within the Air Force,and most went back for a second tour if the war had not ended.

F/Lt Joseph William Lennon DFC (pff), NZ421732, was born 6 Feb 1913 at Kiripaka, Whangarei, completed 35 ops with No. 630 Squadron RAF and was later posted to No. 242 Squadron RAF (Transport Command) flying Stirlings. He was awarded the DFC on the 12 June 1944, and he served in the RNZAF from the 7th of March 1942 till 26th of June 1947. He died at Maungaturoto on the 23rd of September 1985.

I do not know what became of Bruce Reece, sorry but perhaps stayed with his pilot, Joe Lennon, and went on to transports too?

Many thanks Dave,

I did not know that Joe Lennon had gone onto Transport Command so that is appreciated.
Yes, you are correct about the screening process, I should have detailed it more.
Harry Parkins, their flight engineer was an instructor for a period but begged to go back on ops cause he reckoned it was safer!
The powers that be granted his wish.

I've done quite a bit of searching for Bruce Reece but like you said, nothing comes to hand.
Regards,
John

I noted that the only Bruce Reece on the online NZ death register to have died between 1944 and now was born in 1931 so that is not the airman you seek. So this means only two things, he's either still alive, or he died in another country.

I'd suggest you place a post seeking info onto my Wings Over New Zealand Forum as there are plenty of experts there - http://rnzaf.proboards.com

Hello,

Welcome and thank you for your post!
Regards.

Bruno

Dave Homewood wrote:I noted that the only Bruce Reece on the online NZ death register to have died between 1944 and now was born in 1931 so that is not the airman you seek. So this means only two things, he's either still alive, or he died in another country.

I'd suggest you place a post seeking info onto my Wings Over New Zealand Forum as there are plenty of experts there - http://rnzaf.proboards.com

Dave,
I had another Kiwi gentleman, a newspaper reporter, give some details on both RNZAF crew members.
I'll have to go back and have another look!
Thank you.
John