ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 229148
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| Date: | Saturday 8 June 1940 |
| Time: | day |
| Type: |  Fairey Battle Mk I |
| Owner/operator: | 103 Sqn RAF |
| Registration: | N2253 |
| MSN: | PM-N |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 3 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | 40 miles north of Rouen, -
 France
|
| Phase: | Combat |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | Ouzouer-le-Doyen, France |
Fairey Battle Mk.I N2253 (PM-N) 103 Squadron, RAF: Written off (destroyed) when lost (Failed To Return) from combat operations. All three crew survived, but were captured and taken as PoWs. According to the official Air Ministry file into the incident (File AIR 81/841): "Battle N2253 crashed 40 miles north of Rouen, France, 8 June 1940. Sergeant G Beardsley, Temporary Leading Aircraftman G F Lewis and Sergeant G Avery: prisoners of war"
Six Battles attacked enemy columns in the Poix area in daylight and during this operation Pilot Officer G W Thorougood observed 50 plus Ju 87 Stuka dive bombers attacking a village. He dived his aircraft right through the enemy formation and opened fire with his front gun claiming one Ju 87 destroyed. His gunner, Pilot Officer Webber on his first operation, claimed to have shot down a Bf 109 that came to the aid of the dive-bombers. Pilot Officer Thorougood was forced to crash-land his damaged aircraft near Paris. Pilot Officer Webber, who was seriously wounded three times in the attack, was immediately evacuated to England.
Sergeant G Beardsley and his crew were also shot down and taken prisoner. Battle N2253 was airborne from Ozouer-le-Doyen, on a mission to Sainte-Ceronne-les-Mortagne. Damaged by return fire while attacking Ju 87s and crash-landed South of Paris. This was the third time in less than a month that Sergeant Beardsley and his gunner, Leading Aircraftsman Lewis, had been shot down. They had previously been shot down on 14 May 1940 in Battle P2191 and again on May 25 1940 on a mission to Abbeville.
On the two previous occasions they had managed to return to the Squadron. Leading Aircraftsman Lewis had recently been awarded a DFM.
Crew of Battle N2253:
Sergeant G Beardsley (pilot) RAF 565475: survived, captured, taken as PoW: Interned in PoW Camps L1/L6/357, as PoW No 112
Leading Aircraftman G F Lewis (Observer) RAF 533360: survived, captured, taken as PoW; Interned in PoW Camps L1/L6/357 as PoW 289. Promoted to Sgt during captivity
Sergeant G Avery DFM (Wireless Op./Air Gunner) RAF 518279; survived, captuted, taken as PoW. Interned in PoW Camps L1/8B/L3/L6/357, as PoW No.111. DFM Gazetted 6 November 1940.
Sources:
1. Royal Air Force Aircraft N1000-N9999 (James J Halley, Air Britain, 1977)
2. National Archives (PRO Kew) File Air 81/841: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C14502647
3. The Battle File (Sidney Shail, Air Britain, 1997)
4. http://www.epibreren.com/ww2/raf/103_squadron.html#0806
5. http://francecrashes39-45.net/page_fiche_av.php?id=6227
6. http://aircrewremembered.com/beardsley-g.html
7. https://www.northlincsweb.net/103Sqn/html/103_squadron_fairey_battle_losses_1939__to_1940.html
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 20-Sep-2019 00:42 | Dr. John Smith | Added |
| 24-Sep-2019 12:08 | stehlik49 | Updated [Operator] |
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