“The young Mrs Barrington”? again. A lot of this is so so much tripe, as was the first account earlier on in this book. The damned Jerries use to bow and scrape to her when she visited Chris at camp.”
Son in the RAF Husband in the Luftwaffe
War Log Archive
Page 89
Page 90
[POW ID card, not transcribed. Unclear when he “stole” these, presumably just before they were liberated by the Russians. 90, 90a and 90b all relate to the Dulag Luft camp (transit camp before arrival at Stalag IVB) which was just outside Frankfurt]
“Jerry documents referring to POWs. We had to break open the records office & steal these before we broke out of camp on our own, without waiting for the main body.”
Page 90a
[POW ID card, Dulag Luft again. Accompanying photo now lost]
“One of Churchill’s gangsters!” [referring to himself]
“Taken after arrival at IVB, 3 days & nights in a cattle truck. Notice the chic hairstyle!”
“Remarks. Dulag Luft: very mistrustful!!!”
Page 90b
“these were taken 4 days after capture at the Interrogation Centre of Dulag Luft outside Frankfurt. I had just had my first wash and shave for five days.”
Page 91
4,000 tons of bombs from morning to midnight, Germany given worst-ever air bombardment.
RAF Reveal Secret of Pathfinders
Four thousand tons of bombs rained down on Germany on Wednesday and Wednesday night – the greatest ever bombardment ever made in a single dawn to midnight.
Page 92
“Description of Pathfinder force”
About a year ago RAF pilots began to appear wearing the gilt eagle of the officers’ cap badge on the flap of the left breast pocket, under their flying wings. The first wearer was Air Commodore D C T Bennett, DSO, former Imperial Airways Pilot who established the world distance record of 6,045 miles from Dundee to South Africa in the Mayo Composite seaplane. From such signs at home and from statements made by the Germans and information trickling from Germany through neutral sources it became known that Bomber Command was in process of evolving a new technique to improve the accuracy of their night attacks.
Page 93
“Tang Standard, 5/6/45. Extract of the Tanganyika Times telling of my repatriation”
Ex-prisoners home again
The Bishop of Central Tanganyika, the Rt Rev G A Chambers has received news by cable that his elder son Talbot, has returned to his home at Old Windsor, Berks, safe and sound. The Bishop’s son was taken prisoner at Arnheim. A cable was also received in Dar es Salaam recently, by Mrs H F J Powell, from her elder son David Cleary, to say that he had arrived back in England. Warrant Officer Cleary was shot down over Berlin in August, 1943, when taking part in one of the very big raids over that city. He was a member of the Pathfinders.
Page 94
“Nazi U Boat captured by British on display in the River Thames, London (press photographs)”
Page 95
Folies Bergere – Follies Cocktail
Page 95a
Adverts
Page 96
“One of the villages we passed through on our way back home (Audigast)”
Page 97
Presented at the Stoll Theatre Kingsway, London
Back home, a revue presented by Stalag Luft III (by permission of the Air Council)
In honour of the British Red Cross, at whose request profits will be given to the International Red Cross Committee
Page 97a
[Programme, not transcribed]
Page 98
The Pathfinder Association, membership details
Page 99
NLT Pathfinders 115 Mount Street London
Sorry unable to be with you but doing slight jink to South Press on with the party and best wishes – Bennett Cracknell Alabaster 115
Page 100
Pathfinder Bennett is ‘missing’ Left airport – then silence
Air Vice-Marshall Donald Bennett, founder and wartime commander of the RAFs Pathfinder Force, took off in a plane from Heston Airport at 3.17 pm yesterday and has not been heard of since. Every airfield in Britain is watching for the machine – a Percival Proctor IV light monoplane. Its range is 500 miles. Apparently, Air Vice Marshal Bennett did not indicate his destination before leaving the airport, said an official of the Ministry of Civil Aviation last night. Bennett was the man who perfected the RAF’s pinpoint bombing. He trained the cream of Bomber Command to smash through to their targets and light them with flares for the mighty forces following in for obliteration bombing.
Page 101
Pathfinder Bennett safe: never “missing” ‘I cannot understand it all’
Bennett of the Pathfinders – Air Vice Marshal DCT Bennett – who was reported “missing” after setting off from Heston on a solo flight yesterday – is safe and well and was never missing at all.
Page 102
Stoll Theatre, Kingsway.
Tom Arnold brings you Ralph Reader with the original RAF Gang Show
Page 102a
Programme, not transcribed
Page 103
RAF Gang Show
