Lancaster at East Moor.
On 2nd January 1944 the crew of this aircraft took off from East Moor at 00.30 hrs and completed their Op to Berlin. On their return legand
at around 07.30 hrs over Calais the pilot discovered the throttle on the port inner engine had jammed at cruising power.
On arrival at East moor a landing was attempted with 3 engines throttled back and the port inner jammed on a much higher power setting.
The pilot overshot his first attempt and went around. On the second approach the aircraft touched down safely but because the port inner
could no be throttled back the aircraft swung off the runway and crossed the grass, narrowly missed flying control before being brought
to a halt on an empty disperal pan. The aircraft sustained some minor damage on the way. Cat. A(c)/FB was recorded.
Brian Shields reports in his "East Moor Experience" book
that the crew were debriefed and crawled into bed by 10.30hrs. They were woken at 17.00hrs and briefed for a report to Berlin the next night.
Flying in Lancaster DS788 the same crew were then involved in a more serious incident avoiding a collision with an enemy FW200 gunship. The pilot of the Lancaster
put his aircraft into a steep dive for 6,000ft he eventually leveled out. The crew then realised that the oxygen supply had been damaged. whilst
over the target they then released that the electrics had been damaged and this prevented the bombs being released electrically. It was later dropped after it was released by hand.
On their return the pilot was hand fed oxygen by the flight engineer from a hand bottle where they made a landing at Coleby Grange. It was then discovered that the photo-flash had
been rolling around the aircraft making a hole in the floor. For his actions the pilot was awarded a richly deserved DFC.
The aircraft was built to Contract ACFT/239 by Armstrong Whitworth Ltd at Baginton and delivered to MU store in September 1943. It was
issued to 432 Sqdn in late November 1943. It sustained Cat. A(c)/FB damage in the incident detailed above and was repaired on site.
The repair was completed by 14th January 1944. It was then transferred to 426 Sqdn at Linton on Ouse on 9th February 1944 when 432 Sqdn
began converting to Halifaxes. It then transferred to 408 Sqdn at Linton on Ouse in April 1944 when 426 Sqdn began converting to Halifaxes.
It then transferred to 1668 HCU at Bottesford in July 1944 when 408 Sqdn again converted to Halifaxes. It completed it's service life
with 1668 HCU and was struck off charge on 20th March 1945.
Pilot - P/O Thomas Benson Spink RCAF (J/18812), of Vancouver, Canada.
FEng - Sgt John Banks,
Nav - F/Sgt D Harmon,
AB - Sgt F Naylor,
WOp/AG - Sgt J MacFarlane,
AG - Sgt L Proulx, Possibly Lionel Proulx RCAF, of USA.
AG - F/Sgt W Leadley.
""This officer was a pilot of an aircraft detailed to attack Berlin one night in January 1944. On the outward flight the
aircraft was hit by bullets from a fighter. The oxygen supply began to leak. Despite this Pilot Officer Spink continued his
mission although the target was still some 200 miles distant. In spite of much physical discomfort caused by the lack of oxygen, Pilot
Spink reached and bombed his objective and afterwards flew the damaged aircraft back to base. He displayed great
determination, fortitude and devotion to duty.""
This was the DS830's 7th Op. and P/O Spinks 9th Op. DS830 went on to complete 12 Ops with 432 Sqdn before transfer to 426 Sqdn
and P/O Spink completed 15 Op's with 432 Sqdn, three of these being on Wellingtons and twelve on Lancasters, before being posted out
in February 1944.
Thomas Spink RCAF was born in Vancouver in 1919 where he enlisted on 26th June 1941. While his DFC was awarded for the actions on 2/3 January 1944 he was not actually given it until
much later, possibly as he declined to accept it. It was mailed to him in Canada in March 1949. He served in the RCAF post-war. The citation for his DFC reads...