LEST WE FORGET
Air Operations: (No. 462 Squadron Halifax aircraft LL610), Germany, 2 November 1944
Date: 2-3 November 1944
Target: Dusseldorf
Total Force: Dispatched – 992, Attacking – 946
RAAF Force: No. 460 Dispatched – 23, Attacking – 23; No. 462 Dispatched – 15, Attacking – 15; No. 463 Dispatched – 15, Attacking – 15; No. 466 Dispatched – 14, Attacking – 14; No. 467 Dispatched – 15, Attacking – 15
Tons of Bombs Dropped: 4,484
Total Aircraft Lost: 16
RAAF Aircraft Lost: No. 462 – 2; No. 463 – 1; No. 467 – 1
Dusseldorf was the next target, and on 2nd-3rd November 992 Lancasters and Halifaxes dropped 4,484 tons of bombs from a cloudless sky on this administrative centre of the steel industry which had practically recovered from the 1943 raids. All five RAAF squadrons joined in this attack and the 82 crews were unanimous in their reports of accurate ground marking, good concentration of bombing and the incidence of extensive fires and major explosions while they were over the target. They also met much more spirited opposition, especially from fighters, than on recent raids. Aircraft piloted by Flying Officer Maxton (1) and Flying Officer Gray (428772) of No. 460 each sustained several attacks while Flying Officer Waxman (2) and Warrant Officer Willington (3) of No. 466 had inconclusive combats with enemy jet aircraft. Four RAAF bombers failed to return but almost all the crews survived. Some became prisoners of war but one crew baled out near the American front line and were quickly rescued. Pilot Officer Jubb (4) made a hazardous journey on foot (sometimes posing as an idiot) from near Dusseldorf to American positions close to Aachen; and Warrant Officer Scott (5), although arrested and detained in a house 20 miles south of Cologne, escaped and, after five days of hunger and exhaustion, found refuge with a civilian family near Duren and remained in hiding until rescued by American troops on 26th November.
(1) Flying Officer William Campbell Murray Maxton (415675) was discharged from the RAAF on 6 February 1946.
(2) Flying Officer Joseph Herbert Waxman DFC (418994) was discharged from the RAAF on 7 September 1945.
(3) Flying Officer Allan Frank Willington DFC (417142) was discharged from the RAAF on 4 September 1945.
(4) Flying Officer Robert Venters Jubb DFC (426609) was discharged from the RAAF on 31 August 1945.
(5) Warrant Officer Robert Walter Scott (418184) was discharged from the RAAF on 5 April 1947.
Extracts from Herington, J. (John) (406545) Air War Over Europe 1944-1945, Australian War Memorial, Canberra, 1963 – Pages 302, 305-6
Halifax LL610 took off from RAF Driffield at 1627 hours on the night of 2/3rd November 1944 to bomb Dusseldorf, Germany. Fifteen aircraft from the Squadron took part in the raid and two of these including LL610 failed to return.
The crew members of LL610 were:
Flight Sergeant Peter Brabazon Brett (434238) (Wireless Air Gunner) PoW, Discharged from the RAAF: 27 October 1945
Sergeant Hugh Brydon (1035149) (RAFVR) (Flight Engineer) PoW
Sergeant Hugh James Burden (1581371) (RAFVR) (Navigator) PoW
Sergeant Harald Peter Christensen (1819753) (RAFVR) (Rear Gunner) PoW
Sergeant Robert Douglas Eadie (1527066) (RAFVR) (Bomb Aimer) PoW
Flight Sergeant Robert Venters Jubb DFC (426609) (Pilot) Evaded Capture, Discharged from the RAAF: 31 August 1945
Flight Sergeant Bruce Theodore Sharpe (423486) (Mid Gunner) PoW, Discharged from the RAAF: 31 October 1945
All the crew survived the crash. Flight Sergeant Jubb evaded capture and was returned to allied lines safely while the remaining crew members became Prisoners of War.
In a later report Flight Sergeant Jubb stated “The aircraft crashed 20 miles south west of Dusseldorf at 1945 hours on 2 November. Shortly after we left the target we were hit by flak. It got one of the engines and the fuselage and the plane caught fire. When flames started coming in the cockpit I though it time to get out. So I told crew to leave the ship. A little while later I asked if everyone had gone and got no answer so I assumed they had baled out successfully and I followed. I saw the plane crash and burn up. I landed in a turnip patch and buried my equipment and started due west guided by the moon and the stars. I never saw any of my crew on the ground. I walked for two days/nights and reached the American lines on 4 November.”
No. 462 Squadron lost Halifax MZ401 (Pilot Officer Robert Richard Mitchell (418452) (Pilot)) on 2 November 1944.
No. 463 Squadron lost Lancaster PD338 (Flight Sergeant David William Davidson (418355) (Wireless Operator Air Gunner)) on 2 November 1944.
No. 467 Squadron lost Lancaster DV396 (Flying Officer Leslie Keith Landridge (429972) (Pilot)) on 2 November 1944.
References:
Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour On-Line Records (RAAF Casualty Information compiled by Alan Storr (409804))
Commonwealth War Graves Commission On-Line Records
Department of Veteran’s Affairs On-Line WWII Nominal Roll