LEST WE FORGET
Flight Sergeant Alan Frederick LOXTON
Service No: 414710
Born: Rockhampton QLD, 14 May 1919
Enlisted in the RAAF: 8 November 1941
Unit: No. 467 Squadron, RAF Bottesford, Lincolnshire
Died: Air Operations: (No. 467 Squadron Lancaster aircraft EE194), Germany, 28 August 1943, Aged 24 Years
Buried: Durnbach War Cemetery, Bad Tolz, Bayern, Germany
CWGC Additional Information: Son of William Henry and Sarah Ann Loxton; nephew of Mrs. R. Wilden, of Wilston, Queensland, Australia.
Roll of Honour: Brisbane QLD
Remembered: Panel 111, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
Date: 27-28 August 1943
Target: Nuremberg
Total Force: Dispatched – 674, Attacking – 621
RAAF Force: No. 460 Dispatched – 21, Attacking – 20; No. 467 – Dispatched – 14, Attacking – 14
Tons of Bombs Dropped: 1,671
Total Aircraft Lost: 33
RAAF Aircraft Lost: No. 467 – 1
On 27th-28th August conditions were radically different than the previous attack against Nuremberg on 10-11 August and visibility was marred only by slight ground haze. The attack began well but imitation red markers were dropped by German aircraft and these, together with dummy fires, again spread the attack over non-vulnerable rural areas. Enemy fighters flew around with their navigation lights burning so that both they and the ground defences had great freedom of action, and took a heavy toll of the attackers.
Extracts from Herington, J. (John) (406545) Air War Against Germany and Italy 1939-1943, Australian War Memorial, Canberra, 1954 – Pages 596,7
Lancaster EE194 took off from RAF Bottesford at 2128 hours on the night of 27/28th August 1943 to bomb Nuremberg, Germany. The bomb load was 1 x 4000 lb (pound) (1,800 kg) bomb, 88 x 30 lb (14 kg), 600 x 4 lb (2 kg) incendiaries. Nothing was heard from the aircraft after take off and it did not return to base. Fourteen aircraft from the Squadron took part in the raid and one of these EE 194 failed to return. Post war it was established that the aircraft crashed at Mausdorf, 6 kms north of Langenzenn and all the crew members were killed
The crew members of EE194 were:
Sergeant James Andrew Beck (641951) (RAF) (Flight Engineer)
Flight Sergeant Alfred Shurrock Dodson (417348) (Rear Gunner)
Flying Officer Melville Ross Good (285324) (Pilot)
Flight Sergeant Raymond Henry Hallam (414348) (Bomb Aimer)
Sergeant William Elder Hogarth (R/149420) (RCAF) (Mid Upper Gunner)
Flight Sergeant Bernard Kerlin (413610) (Navigator)
Flight Sergeant Alan Frederick Loxton (414710) (Wireless Operator Air Gunner)
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, 166/25/68