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No.635 Sqn RAF
Founded : 20th March 1944
Nos ducimus ceteri secunter - We lead, others follow
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No.635 Sqn RAF
Aircraft for : No.635 Sqn RAF | |||
A list of all aircraft known to have been flown by No.635 Sqn RAF. A profile page including a list of all art prints for the aircraft is available by clicking the aircraft name. | |||
Squadron | Info | ||
Manufacturer : Avro Production Began : 1942 Retired : 1963 Number Built : 7377 | Lancaster The Avro Lancaster arose from the avro Manchester and the first prototype Lancaster was a converted Manchester with four engines. The Lancaster was first flown in January 1941, and started operations in March 1942. By March 1945 The Royal Air Force had 56 squadrons of Lancasters with the first squadron equipped being No.44 Squadron. During World War Two the Avro Lancaster flew 156,000 sorties and dropped 618,378 tonnes of bombs between 1942 and 1945. Lancaster Bomberss took part in the devastating round-the-clock raids on Hamburg during Air Marshall Harris' Operation Gomorrah in July 1943. Just 35 Lancasters completed more than 100 successful operations each, and 3,249 were lost in action. The most successful survivor completed 139 operations, and the Lancaster was scrapped after the war in 1947. A few Lancasters were converted into tankers and the two tanker aircraft were joined by another converted Lancaster and were used in the Berlin Airlift, achieving 757 tanker sorties. A famous Lancaster bombing raid was the 1943 mission, codenamed Operation Chastise, to destroy the dams of the Ruhr Valley. The operation was carried out by 617 Squadron in modified Mk IIIs carrying special drum shaped bouncing bombs designed by Barnes Wallis. Also famous was a series of Lancaster attacks using Tallboy bombs against the German battleship Tirpitz, which first disabled and later sank the ship. The Lancaster bomber was the basis of the new Avro Lincoln bomber, initially known as the Lancaster IV and Lancaster V. (Becoming Lincoln B1 and B2 respectively.) Their Lancastrian airliner was also based on the Lancaster but was not very successful. Other developments were the Avro York and the successful Shackleton which continued in airborne early warning service up to 1992. |
Signatures for : No.635 Sqn RAF | ||
A list of all signatures from our database who are associated with this squadron. A profile page is available by clicking their name. | ||
Name | Info | |
Flight Sergeant Jack Baldwin Click the name above to see prints signed by Flight Sergeant Jack Baldwin | Flight Sergeant Jack Baldwin Jack was a Flight Engineer who originally was sent to 51 Sqn, but before he could fly any Operations was transferred to 635 Sqn where he was to fly the last 16 Bomber Operations of the War. | |
Flight Lieutenant Boris Bressloff DFC Click the name above to see prints signed by Flight Lieutenant Boris Bressloff DFC | Flight Lieutenant Boris Bressloff DFC Having completed his training as a Bomb Aimer he joined 635 Sqn serving with W.O. Ernie Patterson and W.O. Harry Parker on over 50 Ops in Lancasters with Pilot Alex Throne DSO DFC. | |
Warrant Officer Ken Calton Click the name above to see prints signed by Warrant Officer Ken Calton | Warrant Officer Ken Calton Joining the RAF in late 1940, he served as a Flight Engineer with 7, 156 and 12 Squadrons before finally joining 635 Sqn, Pathfinder Force on Lancasters who acted as Master Bombers for this final raid of the war in Europe. | |
Flight Lieutenant Ken Carlton Click the name above to see prints signed by Flight Lieutenant Ken Carlton | Flight Lieutenant Ken Carlton Flight Engineer, 156, 7 and 635 Squadrons. | |
Warrant Officer Harry Parker DFM Click the name above to see prints signed by Warrant Officer Harry Parker DFM | Warrant Officer Harry Parker DFM As a Flight Engineer he flew 54 Ops on Lancasters with 635 Sqn Pathfinder Force in the same crew as W.O. Ernie Patterson and Flt Lt Boris Bressloff. Post-war he flew with Leonard Cheshire in his privately owned Mosquito. | |
Warrant Officer Ernie Patterson DFC Click the name above to see prints signed by Warrant Officer Ernie Patterson DFC | Warrant Officer Ernie Patterson DFC Joining the Royal Air Force in 1942, he served with 635 Sqn Pathfinder Force until the end of the war. As a WOP/Air Gunner he completed 51 Ops on Lancasters â€" all of which were with Flt Lt Boris Bressloff and W.O. Harry Parker. | |
M/Sig R D Pearson Click the name above to see prints signed by M/Sig R D Pearson | M/Sig R D Pearson Joined the RAF in 1943 to begin training as an Air Gunner. After the usual short attachments at various training stations eventually ending up at No 2 AGS Dalcross. Air firing was carried out from an Avro Anson. There was always a mad rush to be first aboard the aircraft on every detail, not from enthusiasm, but from trying to avoid winding up the undercarriage after take off. M/Sig Pearson went from Dalcross to Kinloss to join a crew flying Whitleys and several months later ended up at 158 Sqdn Lissett to commence operations on Halifaxes. After half a tour and very happy at Lissett his crew were posted onto a PFF Sqdn, 635 Sqdn Downham Market. His first operation, and very nearly his last, was a daylight raid on Hamburg. On the bombing run, they had the misfortune to be selected by the pilot of a ME262 as his victim. He was not spotted until he was dead astern and blazing away with the four 30mm cannon in the nose. Evasive action was given and the pilot promptly stood the Lanc on its nose. Unfortunately not all the cannon shells missed and they lost quite a piece of fuselage leaving ammo belts hanging out in the slipstream. After regaining level flight, they were attacked again by another ME262, but this time they were lucky. Both ME pilots decided to push off and find some other sitting duck! Despite these attacks, they carried on and bombed, making their way home across the North Sea, not a pleasant journey. The pilot received an immediate award of the DFC. M/Sig Pearson finished the war out at Downham Market and after the war in Europe ended was posted to 83 Sqdn Conningsby for Tiger Force training and operations against the Japanese. Fortunately the war in the east ceased just as they were ready to depart. He was demobbed in May 1947, but was not happy out of uniform so was back in again at the end of 1949 as an A/G flying on Lincolns at 9 Sqdn. Binbrook. He had a short detachment with 617 Sqdn at Shallufa, Egypt and at the end of 1952 was posted onto B29 aircraft with 15 Sqdn. Coningsby. After six months he was posted to Little Rissington on a Link Trainer course and then to FTS Syerston as a Link instructor to Naval cadet pilots. In 1955, he was required to either remuster to a ground trade or take another aircrew trade. He was posted to Swanton Morley to take training as an Air Signaller and from then to St Mawgan 228 Sqdn on Shackletons. Next came a posting to Northolt in a drawing office drawing En-Route charts and Terminal Approach Procedures. Back to flying in 1961 and a posting to 224 Sqdn Gibraltar and then to Air Traffic Control School at Shawbury. On completion of this course came a posting to RAF Lyneham as Local Controller and thence to RAF Colerne as Approach Controller. He left the service in 1968. | |
Flt Lt David Ware MBE DFC AFC Click the name above to see prints signed by Flt Lt David Ware MBE DFC AFC | Flt Lt David Ware MBE DFC AFC Having completed Pilot training he joined 635 Sqn, part of the Pathfinder Force where he completed 45 Ops on Lancasters including the final raid at Berchtesgaden. |
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