LEST WE FORGET
Flying Officer Frank Sydney DAVENPORT
Service No: 18071
Born: Carlton NSW, 2 January 1916
Enlisted in the RAAF: 19 August 1940 (at Melbourne VIC)
Unit: No. 467 Squadron, RAF Bottesford, Lincolnshire
Died: Air Operations: (No. 467 Squadron Lancaster aircraft W4240), Germany, 18 October 1943, Aged 27 Years
Buried: Hanover War Cemetery, Hannover, Niedersachsen, Germany
CWGC Additional Information: Son of Frank and Charlotte Hannah Davenport, of Yarraville, Victoria, Australia.
Roll of Honour: Yarraville VIC
Remembered: Panel 110, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
Date: 18-19 October 1943
Target: Hanover
Total Force: Dispatched – 360, Attacking – 349
RAAF Force: No. 460 Dispatched – 19, Attacking – 19; No. 467 Dispatched – 16, Attacking – 16
Tons of Bombs Dropped: 1,697
Total Aircraft Lost: 17
RAAF Aircraft Lost: No. 460 – 1; No. 467 – 1
Another raid ten nights later (the first night suitable for flying) was intended to ram home the advantage gained by this devastating stroke (a previous attack against Hanover on 8-9 October). It achieved little, however, although one northern suburb was well hit. Again the main difficulty was confused marking, as the Pathfinders began with ground target-indicators, switched to sky markers because of low cloud and then reverted to ground markers. Premature release by crews unable to assess the comparative value of the scattered flares, led to aggregate errors which soon centred the attack in open country back along the approach line of the bombers. In addition to aircraft shot down, five Australian Lancasters suffered nine separate fighter attacks but in each case escaped by good crew cooperation.
Extracts from Herington, J. (John) (406545) Air War Against Germany and Italy 1939-1943, Australian War Memorial, Canberra, 1954 – Pages 605, 606-7
Lancaster W4240 took off from RAF Bottesford at 1708 hours on the night of 18/19th October 1943 to bomb Hanover, Germany. The bomb load 1 x 4000 lb (pound) (1,800 kg) bomb, 104 x 30 lb (14 kg), 1260 x 4 lb (2 kg) incendiaries. Nothing was heard from the aircraft after take off and it did not return to base. Post war it was established that the aircraft crashed some 3 kms north west of Rixforde, about 30 kms north east of Hanover. Six of the crew were killed and one became a Prisoner of War.
The crew members of W4240 were:
Sergeant Frederick George Beardwell (1334654) (RAFVR) (Wireless Operator Air Gunner)
Sergeant Thomas Jackson Clark (1581159) (RAFVR) (Mid Upper Gunner)
Flying Officer Frank Sydney Davenport (18071) (Pilot)
Flying Officer John Robinson Fisher (132807) (RAFVR) (Navigator)
Flying Officer Samuel Henry Hollerin (138468) (RAF) (Bomb Aimer) PoW
Sergeant John Leslie Killan (1351860) (RAFVR) (Rear Gunner)
Sergeant Frederick George Newton (1801399) (RAFVR) (Flight Engineer)
In a later statement Flying Officer Hollerin reported “Being the Bomb Aimer in the aircraft I was the first to leave. When I left the Flight Engineer was behind me with his chute on, and he was waiting to follow me out. I thought he would have been able to follow me immediately. I know no more as regards the fate of the crew until told later by the Germans that they had all been killed. I was also shown a photo of Sergeant Killan. The only conclusion I could draw was that the aircraft exploded after I left, and I don’t remember pulling my rip cord.”
No. 460 Squadron lost Lancaster ED985 (Pilot Officer Jack Turnbull (416809) (Pilot and Aircraft Captain)) on 18 October 1943.
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
National Archives of Australia On-Line Record A705, 166/9/194