VINCENT BARBER was serving as a Sergeant in the Intelligence corps when he was killed on active service on 8th July 1941. He was aged 26 and is buried in Bletchley Cemetery.

He was the son of Herbert and Mabel Barber of 4, Lennox Road, Bletchley and at the outbreak of war had been working as a school teacher. He was killed in an air raid on the Victory Crescent area of Southampton.

DAVID CONQUEST BARKER was serving as a Pilot Officer, with 44 Squadron, the Royal Air Force when he was killed on active service on 24th May 1940, He was aged 19 and is buried in Rheinberg War Cemetery in Germany.

He was the son of Alan Oscar Barker, and of Norah Stancomb Barker, of Selsey, Sussex, his father being a surgeon. He was educated at Christ’s Hospital in Horsham. He joined the Royal Air Force and trained as a pilot. He joined 44 Squadron flying the Handley Page Hampden Mk I, a twin engine light bomber from RAF Waddington in Lincolnshire.

On the night of 23rd May 1940 he was the 2nd Pilot aboard Hampden, L4171, which took off from Waddington, along with 72 other aircraft, to bomb rail communication in a tactical support of the British Expeditionary Force in France. The aircraft was hit by flak fire and crashed at Broichweiden, Würselen, near Aachen, North Rhine-Westphalia with the loss of all four crew members.

Handley Page Hampdens of 44 Squadron

MONTAGUE VICTOR BERRY was serving as a Sergeant with the 107 Squadron, the Royal Air Force when he was killed on active service on 7th June 1941. He was aged 20 and is commemorated on the Runnymede Memorial for Airmen with no known grave.

He was the son of the Reverend Arthur Montague Berry, B.A. (Lond.), and Victoria Olive Aimie Berry, of Willen Vicarage, Newport Pagnell. He enlisted into the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve at RAF Cardington at the outbreak of war. He trained as a pilot and joined 107 Squadron of Bomber Command flying the Bristol Blenheim IV light bomber.

The Squadron was loaned to Coastal command and were based at RAF Great Massingham in Norfolk. At 09:15 on 7th June 1941 he and two other crew members, Sergeants Kaye and Knox, took off in Blenheim IV T2047 on an antishipping sortie off the Dutch Coast. Their aircraft vanished without a trace and all three aircrew presumed dead.

Bristol Blenheim Mk IV

NORMANY STANLEY BIRCH was serving as a Flight Sergeant, 172 Squadron, the Royal Air Force when he was killed on active service on 15th July 1944. He was aged 26 and is commemorated on the Runnymede Memorial for Airmen with no known grave.

He was the son of Stanley Herbert Birch and Elsie Birch, of Aston Clinton, Buckinghamshire.

He enlisted into the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve in Oxford in 1944. He trained as a Wireless Operator/Air Gunner and was posted to 172 Squadron. The Squadron which was based at RAF Chivenor in Devon had been formed to use the new Leigh Light in conjunction with ASV radar on anti-submarine patrols. The Leigh Light was a powerful 22 million candles searchlight used to illuminate the surface of the sea and any submarines caught on the surface. They operated adapted Vickers Wellington twin engine bombers in the role.

On the run up to and during the invasion of Normandy the Squadron carried out anti-submarine patrols in the English Channel. On 15th July 1944 Flight Sergeant was a member of the crew of Vickers Wellington Mk XIV N831 which crashed into the sea near Lundy Island in the Bristol Channel during bad weather. All 5 crew members were lost.

Vickers Wellington Mk XIV

ARTHUR C GORDON CRANE was serving as an Ordinary Seaman aboard HMS Havock of the Royal Navy when he died of his wounds on 22nd March 1942. He was aged 32 and is buried in Malta Capuccini Naval Cemetery.

He was the son of Harry Emanuel and Elizabeth Crane, having been born in Ampthill, Bedfordshire. He married Lillian Moore in 1937 and at the outbreak of war he was living in Wolverton working as a printer’s estimate clerk.

He enlisted into the Royal Navy and joined the crew of HMS Havock, a H class destroyer built in 1936. On 16th May 1941, the ship was ordered to reinforce the Mediterranean Fleet at Malta and was assigned to the 2nd Destroyer Flotilla. During the Battle of Cape Spada on 19th July, the ship escorted the Australian light cruiser HMAS Sydney and rescued some of the 525 survivors from the Italian cruiser Bartolomeo Colleoni together with the other escorting destroyers. Her boiler room was flooded after an attack by Italian aircraft after this battle and she was repaired at Suez Havock and her sister Hasty surprised the Italian submarine Berillo on the surface on 2nd October off the coast of Egypt and forced her to scuttle herself. The destroyers rescued 47 survivors between them. Havock was engaged on escort duties for the next six months. During the Battle of Cape Matapan, she torpedoed and sank the Italian destroyer Alfieri on 28th March 1941. Havock was damaged by dive bombers on 23th May, killing 15 and wounding 10 men, after a patrol off Heraklion, Crete. She was under repair at Alexandria until 16th June. The ship bombarded Vichy French positions in Lebanon in early July and then began escorting ships to Tobruk until October when her propeller shafts and propellers were damaged. Havock was under repair from 21th October to 4th December at Alexandria.

In mid-December, the ship escorted the supply ship Breconshire to Malta during the brief engagement known as First Battle of Sirte and then joined Force K in an attempt to intercept an Italian convoy to Tripoli, Libya. On the night of 18th/19th December, Force K ran over an Italian minefield that sank one cruiser and damaged two others. Havock escorted the badly damaged light cruiser Aurora back to Malta whilst escorting another convoy to Malta, the ship was diverted to escort the damaged freighter Thermoplylae from Benghazi back to Alexandria but the latter was attacked and sunk en route by Axis aircraft on 19th January. 1942 Havock rescued some 350 survivors before Thermoplylae sank. The ship was transferred to the 22nd Destroyer Flotilla in February and continued to escort convoys to Malta. Whilst in harbour at Malta OS Crane was wounded in a bombing raid and died of his wounds.

HMS Havock

HERBERT ARTHUR DIXEY was serving as a Trooper with the 6th Royal Tank Regiment, The Royal Armoured Corps when he was killed in action on 11th June 1942. He was aged 36 and is commemorated on the Alamein Memorial, having no known grave.

He was the son of Albert and Pricilla Ruth Dixey having been born in Ashdon, Essex. He married Clara Brittin in Northamptonshire in 1933 and he worked as a schoolmaster later moving to Stony Stratford, Buckinghamshire.

He enlisted into the Army and joined the 6RTR in North Africa, they were equipped with Honey and Grant tanks. From 26th May 1942 they were involved in the Battle of Gazala, west of the Libyan port of Tobruk. During an assault by troops of Rommel’s Axis troops of the Panzerarmee Afrika Trooper Dixey’s Grant tanks was hit by a 50mm shell, killing all 3 crew members.

A Grant Tank

HERBERT ROBERT GOODWIN was serving as a Private with the 8th (Territorial) Battalion, The Royal Warwickshire Regiment when he was killed in action on 28th May 1940. He was aged 21 and is buried in Bas-Warneton (Neerwaasten) Communal Cemetery in Belgium.

He was the son of William and Nellie Goodwin, of Bletchley, Buckinghamshire. He enlisted into the Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment before being transferred to the Warwicks. The 8th Battalion RWR joined the British Expeditionary Force in France and were in action along the Ypres-Comines Canal between 26th and 28th May 1940. Private Goodwin was reported as missing in action on 28th May his death being not being confirmed until October 1941.

ROBERT GEOFFREY HIGGINS was serving as a Pilot Officer with 161 Squadron, The Royal Air Force when he was killed on active service on 23rd June 1943. He was aged 20 and commemorated on the Runnymede Memorial for Airmen with no known grave.

He was the son of Arthur and Edith Annie Higgins, of Newport Pagnell, Buckinghamshire. He joined the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve and trained as a pilot before being posted to 161 Squadron. No. 161 (Special Duties) Squadron was a highly secretive unit of the Royal Air Force, performing missions as part of the Royal Air Force Special Duties Service. It was tasked with missions of the Special Operations Executive (SOE) and the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS) during the Second World War. Their primary role was to drop and collect secret agents and equipment into and from Nazi-occupied Europe.

On 22nd June 1943 PO Higgins was the pilot of Handley Page Halifax MK V DG405 MA-7 which took off from RAF Templesford at 23:59. They were on a mission to drop 2 secret agents and supplies for the resistance movement over the central Netherlands. They were on the return trip when at 02:06 their aircraft was shot down by night fighter pilot Major Helmut Lent of the Stab IV./NJG 1, flying Messchersmidt BF 110 G-4 G9+AF from Leeuwarden airfield. The Halifax crashed into the sea some 4 miles off Urk in Holland with the loss of all 8 crew members.

Handley Page Halifax

PETER HOOTON was serving as a Lance Corporal in the 1st battalion, The Oxfordshire & Buckinghamshire Light Infantry when he was killed in action on 3rd November 1944. He was aged 19 and is buried in Leopoldsburg War Cemetery in Belgium.

He was the son of John Henry and Ellen Hooton, of Olney, Buckinghamshire.

The 1st Ox and Bucks landed on Gold Beach in Normandy on 24th June 1944i. The next day they were in action in Operation Epsom, the Battle for Caen. it was unsuccessful, but it did divert significant numbers of Germans away from the American troops. The Germans counter-attacked, the 1st Ox and Bucks moved to positions around the Odon bridgehead where it suffered from heavy German artillery fire. After holding the line, the 1st Battalion's first major engagement during the battle for Caen was the successful attack to capture the village of Cahier and a nearby mill. Fighting around Caen continued for much of the month, with the battalion sustaining significant casualties. In August it took part in an advance towards Falaise, known as Operation Totalize. The Allies reached and captured it. The battalion also captured Pierrefitte during the operation to close the Falaise pocket, encircling two German field armies, the Fifth and 7th, the latter of which was effectively destroyed by the Allies. The victory at Falaise signified the end of the Battle for Normandy Private Hooton was wounded in action on 19th August 1944. The Battalion then took part in the advance east, eventually entering Belgium in early September. They then lead the advance to the Wilhelmina canal where it encountered strong enemy resistance during Operation Market Garden.The 1st Ox and Bucks subsequently took part in operations around the Lower Maas that took place during October and November, including forcing the enemy from its position holding a bridgehead over the River Maas, west of Roermond. Private Hooton was killed in action at this time.

ERIC WILLIAM INWOOD was serving as a Sergeant with 57 Squadron, The Royal Air Force when he was killed on active service on 11th February 1943. He was aged 29 and is commemorated on the Runnymede Memorial for Airmen with no known grave.

He was the son of Arthur William and Agnes Inwood, of Newport Pagnell, Buckinghamshire.

He enlisted into the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve and married Vera Haworth in spring 1942. He was sent to Canada and Penescola Naval station in the USA, trained as an Air Bomber. He joined 57 Squadron, Bomber Command, flying Avro Lancasters from RAF Scampton in Lincolnshire. He was on the crew of Lancaster B1 W434 DX-D which took off from Scampton at 1741 hrs detailed to attack target at Wilhelmshaven. Aircraft failed to return and was lost without a trace. The crew of 7 were all lost.

An Avro Lancaster of 57 Squadron RAF

NOEL ISHAM was serving as a Rifleman with the 8th Battalion, The Prince Consort’s Own The London Rifle Brigade when he was killed in action on 30th August 1944. He was aged 26 and is buried in Serifontaine Communal Cemetery in France, the only serviceman buried there.

He was the son of Percy and Ethelyn Maud Isham and was living in Wolverton Road, Stony Stratford when he enlisted into the army.

He joined the 2nd Battalion, The London Rifle Brigade which was redesignated the 8th Battalion, Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort's Own) (London Rifle Brigade) on 17th January 1941. As part of the 11th Armoured Division, the battalion became a Mortar Battalion and landed on the Normandy beaches on D-Day +4, 10th June 1944. They were involved in the Battles to capture Caen and the surrounding villages and at the Battle of Falaise Pocket which saw the end of the Normandy Campaign, The Battalion crossed the Seine on 28th August 1944 and Rifleman Isham was killed shortly after as they advanced towards Amiens.

ROGER JACKSON was serving as a Leading Aircraftman, pilot under training, when he was killed on active service on 9th August 1943. He was aged 23 and is buried in Newport Pagnell Cemetery.

He was the son of Lewis Robert and Rose Olive Jackson, of Newport Pagnell and married Minnie Jackson in Loughborough in October 1940.

He enlisted into the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve and was selected for pilot training. On 9th August 1943 he was piloting a Miles Magister Mk II training aircraft DL851 which dived into the ground 1½ mile NW of Donington, Lincolnshire.

A Miles Magister Training Aircraft

JOHN WILLIAM JONES was serving as an Able Seaman aboard HMS Samphire of the Royal Navy when he on 30th January 1943. He was aged 32 and is commemorated on the Chatham Naval Memorial, his body never being recovered from the sea.

He was the son of William Henry and Emily Jane Jones and joined the Royal Navy as a boy sailor in January 1928 aged 17, training aboard HMS Ganges. He then served as an Ordinary Seaman on the Iron Duke class Battleship Marlborough until November 1928 when he was discharged on paying a £10 fee. He married Nora Garner in 1935 and at the outbreak of the Second World War re-joined the Navy.

He joined the crew of the Flower class Corvette, HMS Samphire. She carried out convoy escort operations between Liverpool and the Mediterranean Sea. On 21st December 1941, she successfully released depth charges with the British sloop Deptford resulting in the sinking of the German submarine U-567 in the North Atlantic northeast of the Azores. All 47 men on board the U-567 were killed. On 8th November 1942, she escorted USS Leedstown from the Mediterranean after she had been attacked by German aircraft At 12:55 on 9thmNovember, German aircraft attacked again, however Samphire shot down one attacker and then escorted the Leedstown to anchor near Cape Matifu, about 12 miles from Algiers. On 14th December 1942, Samphire assisted in the rescue of nine survivors from the British merchant ship Edencrag, which had been sunk by the German submarine U-443 west of Algiers. HMS Samphire was torpedoed and sunk on the 30th January 1943 off Bougie, Algeria by the Italian submarine Platino while escorting convoy TE-14 which was taking part in the Africa campaign. The Captain, two officers and 42 of the ship’s crew perished. Including Able Seaman Jones.

HMS Samphire

GERALD ARCHIBALD LANGLEY was serving as a Pilot Officer, Pilot with 41 Squadron the Royal Air Force when he was killed on active service on 15th September 1940. He was aged 24 and is buried in Abington Churchyard in Northamptonshire.

He was the son of Archibald Frank Martin Langley and Mary Elizabeth Langley of Potterspury, Northants, having been born in Stony Stratford. He worked for the Prudential Insurance Company and joined the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve.

In March 1939 as an Airman under training Pilot. He was called up to fulltime service on September 1st 1939, he firstly carried out further training and was then sent to No.6 Flying Training School, RAF Little Rissington for No.17 Course, which ran from December 9th 1939 to June 17th 1940. The day after completing this course Gerald was commissioned on June 18th 1940 and on the very same day he was posted direct to No.41 (F) Sqn at RAF Catterick, North Yorkshire. Following its move South to join the Battle of Britain to RAF Hornchurch, the Squadron n saw some very heavy action during the latter half of the Battle over the South East of England. On September 11th 1940, Gerald claimed a Ju 88 as damaged, but was hit by return fire and had to bail out of his Spitfire X4325 over Sevenoaks, Kent, but was fortunately unhurt. The squadron was transferred to RAF Hornchurch, north of the Thames on September 3rd.On what has become Battle of Britain Day, 15th September, he was shot down and killed while in combat with a BF109S. His Spitfire, P9324, crashed and burned out at Wick Farm, Buphan, Essex, He is buried in St. Peter and Paul Churchyard, Abington, Northampton.

Pilot Officer Gerald Langley

CHARLES SIDNEY LAWMAN was serving as a Private with the 2nd Field Bakery, The Royal Army Service Corps when he was killed in action on 17th June 1940. He was aged 20 and is commemorated on the Dunkirk Memorial his body never being recovered for burial.

He was the son of Sidney and Emily Lawman of High Street, Newport Pagnell. He joined the Royal Army Service Corps on the outbreak of war in 1939. The 2nd Field Bakery were sent to France to support the British Expeditionary Force in 1940. After the fall of France his unit was one of many support troops that were cut off to the south by the German advance into France. Making their way to the port of St Nazaire they were embarked by tugs onto the former liner RMS Lancastria on 17th June 1940, anchored some 5 miles of St Nazaire. The ship, designed to carry 2,180 troops and crew was vastly overloaded, with estimates of between 500 and 7,200 aboard. At about 15:50 the Lancastria was attacked by Junkers 88s and hit by 3 or 4 bombs. The ship capsized and sank within 20 minutes of the attack with 2,477 survivors and over 1,700 dead including Private Lawman. The news of the sinking was suppressed by order of Winston Churchill and the families of those lost only knew that their loved ones had been lost serving with the BEF in France.

The end of the Troopship Lancastria

EDWARD JOHN LINE was serving as a Sergeant, Navigator, with 115 Squadron, The Royal Air Force when he was killed on active service on 21st July 1944. He was aged 21 and is buried in Papendrecht General Cemetery in the Netherlands.

He was born in Newport Pagnell and enlisted into the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve in June 1941 and trained as a Navigator and joined 115 Squadron at RAF Witchford near Ely, Cambridgeshire, flying the Avro Lancaster. In April 1944 he married Marie Bellinger in 1944. On 20th July 1944, he was in the crew of Lancaster Mk III ND913 A4-M, named “Popeye” that took off from Witchford at 22:50. They were part of a force of 147 Lancasters and 11 Mosquitos on a target Bottrop Oil Plant near Homberg, Germany. Most probably the aircraft got into trouble near Rotterdam after it had been hit by anti-aircraft fire. Just after midnight the burning aircraft appeared from behind the clouds over Papendrecht.

The aircraft exploded after the fire had reached the bomb bay. One crew member tried to jump to safety with his parachute but burned alive because of the leaking flames. All 7 members of the crew perished.

His wife gave birth to their daughter, Linda, in January 1945 in Potterspury, Northants.

Sergeant Edward Line

JAMES WILLIAM MALLARD was serving as a Sergeant, Observer, with 103 Squadron, The Royal Air force when he died on active service on 5th August 1940. He was aged 27 and is buried Cottesmore Churchyard in Rutland.

He was born in Newport Pagnell and joined the Royal Air Force as an aircraft apprentice in 1929. He joined 103 Squadron before the war as an Observer flying the Fairey Battle single engine twin bomber. He married Nora Darby in Nottingham in January 1940. He was with 103 Squadron was deployed to France in 1940 as part of the RAF Advanced Air Striking Force. On 10th May 1940 the Luftwaffe and the German Army invaded France, Belgium and the Netherlands. The Squadron was heavily committed during the Battle of France, sustaining many losses. In mid-June 1940 the Squadron withdrew from France for RAF Abingdon in England. 103 Squadron was then transferred to RAF Newton near Nottingham and reverted to the control of No. 1 Group RAF, Bomber Command.

On 3rd August 1940 he took off from RAF Newton along with pilot Sergeant Gerald Brams and Air Gunner Sergeant Davies in Fairey Battle MkI L5483 on a night cross country training sortie. The aircraft climbed, stalled and hit trees on approach to Cottesmore after mistaking it for Newton killing both Sergeants Brams and Mallard, the air gunner escaping with slight injuries.

A Fairey Battle Mk I

PETER ERIC MEADOWS was serving as an Ordinary Signalman aboard HM Trawler Rifsnes of the Royal Navy Patrol Service when he was killed on active service on 20th May 1940. He was aged 22 and is commemorated on the Lowestoft Naval Memorial, his body never being recovered for burial.

He was the son of Arthur Thomas and Nora Frances Meadows, of Bletchley, Buckinghamshire.

Rifsnes was built as a fishing boat and requisitioned by the Royal Navy in August 1939 and armed with 1 12 pounder gun. Based in Great Yarmouth, she was sunk off Ostend by German aircraft on 20th May 1940 will the loss of three crew members including OS Meadows.

HM Trawler Rifsnes

ROBERT JOHN ALEXANDER MILLS was serving as a Flying Officer, pilot, with 230 Squadron, the Royal Air Force when he was killed on active service on 29th December 1943. He was aged 21 and is buried in Nairobi Forest Road Cemetery in Kenya.

He was the son of Robert James Mills and Grace Rosina Mills, of Newport Pagnell, Buckinghamshire.

He joined the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve and trained as pilot. He was posted to 230 Squadron operating the Short Sunderland Mk III flying boat. He flew out with 230 Squadron assigned to the Middle East and based in Dar-es-Salaam. Tanzania. Their main task was to patrol the Indian Ocean searching for Japanese submarines. On 29th December 1943 he was flying a Sunderland Mk II on a calibration flight ground and became disorientated whilst flying through cloud and rain. The aircraft flew into Mount Kilimanjaro, in Voi, Kenya and exploded killing all nine crew.

Short Sunderland Mk III Flying Boat

FRANCIS FREDERICK MORRIS was serving as a 2nd Lieutenant with the 73rd Anti-Tank Regiment of the Royal Artillery when he died of his wounds on 4th November 1942. He was aged 22 and is buried in El Alamein war cemetery. He was the son of John James Morris and Rose May Morris, of Bow Brickhill, Buckinghamshire. The 73rd Anti-Tank Regiment was a Territorial unit of the RA equipped with 32 x 17 pounder and 16 x 6 pounder guns and was part of XXX corps, 2nd British army. They played a major role in the Western Desert Campaign taking part in Operation Crusader, an attempt to relieve the siege of Tobruk between 18th November and 30th November 1941. They helped to prevent a further advance by Rommel’s forces in the First Battle of El Alamein between 1st and 27th July 1942 and eventually defeated the German Afrikan Corps in the 2nd Battle of El Alamein between 23rd October and 11th November 1942.2nd Lieutenant Morris was mortally wounded during this battle.

NEVILLE FRANCIS NUGENT MORRIS was serving as a Flying Officer, pilot, 78 Operational Training Unit, the Royal Air Force when he was killed on active service on 16th November 1944. He was aged 21 and is buried in Nicosia War Cemetery in Cyprus.

He was the son of Richard Edmund and Annie May Morris, of Wolverton, Buckinghamshire. He enlisted into the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve and was selected for pilot training and commissioned in May 1944. He was posted to 78 Operational Training Unit of Coastal Command, formed specifically to train crews on the Vickers Wellington XIII using Air to Sea Radar and the powerful Leigh light in the submarine detection role. They were based at RAF Ein Shemar in Palestine. On 16th November 1944 Flying Officer Morris was 2nd Pilot aboard Wellington Mk XIII JA563 which took off from Ein Shemar just after dusk on a night flying exercise. After about 4 hours 45 minutes into the flight Flying Officer Morris was at the controls of the aircraft whilst the captain and navigator were conferring over the aircraft’s position. On return the captain realised that the aircraft had lost height and ordered FO Morris to apply boost to lift the Wellington. However it was too late and the aircraft crashed into high ground at Pano Arodhes at about 2252. Of the crew of 6 only the tail gunner survived with injuries. The board of enquiry blamed faulty pilotage and navigation on the part of the crew, at the time of the crash FO Morris had only completed 15 ½ hours on the Wellington.

The burnt out tail section of Wellington JA563U

JOHN CYRIL NORRIS was serving as a Sergeant with the 135th Hertfordshire Yeomanry Filed Regiment of the Royal Artillery when he died on 8th September 1944. He was aged 29 and is buried in Chungkai War Cemetery in Thailand.

He was the son of Augustus Harvey James Norris and Florence Fanny Norris, of Newport Pagnell, Buckinghamshire.

The 135th were a Territorial unit of the RA and were sent to reinforce the island of Singapore in October 1941, sailing via Halifax in Canada, Cape Town and Bombay. They arrived at their destination, Singapore, on 13th January 1942, during a tropical rain storm, which protected the disembarking troops from Japanese bombers, which had been carrying out massed raids on the town. Based on a rubber plantation near the causeway that linked Singapore Island with the mainland, they were soon in action to defend the Malay Peninsula and had some success before falling back on the island. They continued the action on Singapore Island before they had to destroy their guns and surrender to the Japanese on 15th February 1942. Their commanding officer was Lieutenant-Colonel Peter Toosey, who defied orders to evacuate from Singapore, to remain with his men in captivity. The men were sent to Tamarkan camp in Thailand to build rail bridges over the Khwae Noi River, part of the "Death Railway" from Bankok to Rangoon. Sergeant Norris was killed in an accident on 8th September 1944 and was buried in Wat Kok Mor before being re-interred in 1946.

CHARLES EDWARD PETITT was serving as a Sergeant, pilot, with the Royal Air Force when he was killed on active service on 12th October 1940, He was aged 24 and is buried in Olney cemetery.

He was the son of Frederick Clement Petitt and Francis Annie Petin, of Olney. He was working as a accountant and auditor, lodging in Gravesend, Kent when he enlisted into the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve. He was selected for pilot training and posted to 7 Operational Training Unit at RAF Harwarden in Northeast Wales for instruction in flying single seat fighters. On Saturday 12th October he was piloting Supermarine Spitfire Mk IA P9327 when, for some unknown reason, it dived into the ground near Abergele, Denbighshire.

Sergeant Petitt

RONALD WILKIE JOHN PHELPS was serving as a Sergeant, Wireless Operator, 201 squadron, The Royal Air force, when he was killed on active service on 29th October 1940. He was aged 22 and is buried in Stony Stratford Calverton Road Cemetery.

He was the son of William John and Sybil Mary Phelps, of Botley, Oxford having been born in Potterspury, Northants. He joined the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve and trained as a Wireless Operator.

He was posted to 201 Squadron of Coastal Command at RAF Sullom Voe in The Shetland Islands. The Squadron operated the Short Sunderland Mk I Flying boat, carrying out flying patrols across the North Sea to look for blockade runners, surface raiders and U-boats both in international waters and in Norwegian coastal waters. On 29th October 1940 he was on board Short Sunderland I P9622 on an Air Sea Rescue mission after another Sunderland aircraft, P9620, had crashed at sea. On the return flight, the weather conditions were very bad, so visibility was poor and Sunderland P9622 crashed into a hillside at Dunnett Head peninsula in Caithness, Scotland, about 28 miles southwest of Wick. Of the eleven airmen on board, four lost their lives when the aircraft crashed, including Sergeant Phelps, five airmen were seriously injured.

Short Sunderland of 201 Squadron

GEORGE VINCENT SIGWART was serving as a Sergeant, Wireless Operator, The Royal Air Force when he died on active service on Saturday 7th August 1943. He was aged 29 and is buried in Wolverton Cemetery.

He was the son of Emil and Sophie Sigwart, of Wolverton. At the outbreak of war he was working as an accountant, lodging in Harrow, Middlesex. He enlisted into the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve, training as a Wireless Operator. In January 1942 he married Joyce Chamberlain, from Potterspury, In Newton Abbott, Devon.

On 7th August 1943 he was aboard a Beam Approach night training flight from RAF Church Lawson in Warwickshire flying Airspeed Oxford Mk I LX304. Climbing up from the airfield the aircraft collided with Armstrong-Whitworth Whitley BD221 of RAF Abingdon over a landmark beacon near Cranfield. The Oxford crashed near Stagsden, Beds and its crew of three all died, the Whitley BD221 landed safely at Cranfield.

An Airspeed Oxford Mk I

JOSEPH HENRY SMART was serving as an Engine Room Artificer, 3rd Class on HMS Penzance, Royal Navy when he was killed on active service on 24th August 1940. He was aged 27 and is commemorated on the Chatham Naval Memorial, his body never being recovered from the sea.

He was the son of Joseph and Dorothy Smart having been born in Potterspury, Northants. He had joined the Royal Navy before the war and had married Edith Pallant in Chatham in 1937.

He joined the crew of the sloop HMS Penzance. On the outbreak of the Second World War in September 1939, Penzance was initially employed on patrol duties, checking for contraband and watching German merchant ships in neutral ports in the region. From March 1940 she escorted convoys running between Bermuda and Halifax, Nova Scotia. In July 1940 Penzance was ordered home and on 15th August 1940 left Sydney, Nova Scotia as the only armed escort of Convoy SC 1. By 24th August Penzance was 700 miles south–west of Iceland when she was torpedoed by the German submarine U-37. She was hit by a torpedo on the starboard side, split in two, with some of her depth charges exploding, and sank quickly. Losses were heavy, with 89 of her crew killed, including ERA Smart.

HMS Penzance

HORACE WAKELAND SMITH was serving as an Ordinary Seaman aboard HMS Electra, The Royal Navy when he was killed on active service on 27th February 1942. He was aged 30 and is commemorated on the Chatham Naval Memorial, his body never being recovered from the sea.

He was the son on of Harold and Frances Smith having been born in Edgbaston, Birmingham and was educated at Trinity College, Cambridge. He married Elizabeth Thompson there in 1935. At the outbreak of World Two he was living in Newport Pagnell with his wife and working as a schoolteacher. He enlisted into the Royal Navy and joined the crew of HMS Electra, an E class destroyer.

After the sinking of HMS Hood by the Bismarck on 24th May 1941, HMS Electra raced to the area, arriving about two hours after Hood went down. They were expecting to find many survivors, prepared hot coffee and rum, set up the medical facilities for the casualties, rigged scrambling nets and heaving lines, and placed life belts on the deck where they could be quickly thrown in. From the 94 officers and 1,321 enlisted men who were aboard Hood, only 3 survivors were found. Electra rescued these three and continued searching. There was little probability that anyone was left alive in the water. After dropping off the survivors in Iceland, she refuelled and then sailed immediately to escort the damaged Prince of Wales to Rosyth. After arriving, the men went on a quick shore leave, their first in many months. Then in a period of two weeks, she went to Scapa Flow, then made a run down the West Coast of England, then to Ireland, then refuelled at Derry and then escorted a troop convoy into the Atlantic.

After this, she went into refit at Green & Silley Weir in the Royal Docks at London for six weeks, escorting a convoy to Sheerness on the way. When she came out of the yard, she sported a new disruptive camouflage paint scheme of blues, greens, and greys. Just two days out of the yard, she was on convoy duty again, escorting a convoy through what was called "Bomb Alley". The convoy came under heavy attack by German aircraft, but suffered no losses. She then went on to Scapa Flow for assignment. Shortly after arriving at Scapa Flow, she was detailed to serve as Senior Escort for the first of Arctic convoys to the Soviet Union, called Operation Dervish, which consisted of six merchantmen, escorted by destroyers Electra, Active and Impulsive, three Algerine-class minesweepers, and three trawls. The There were no losses on the trip to Russia, or on the return trip (Russian Convoy QP1) with the destroyer Active, cruisers HMS London and HMS Shropshire, and 11 merchantmen starting on 26th September, and arriving in England on 10th October 1941.

On 25th October, they sailed for the Far East together with HMS Express, would be escorting HMS Prince of Wales to form the nucleus of a new Eastern Fleet to counter Japanese aggression, designated as Force Z. On the afternoon of 10th December 1941, Prince of Wales and Repulse were sunk off Kuantan by 85 Japanese aircraft from the 22nd Air Flotilla based at Saigon. Repulse was sunk by five torpedoes in 20 minutes, and Electra and Vampire moved in to rescue survivors of Repulse Electra and the other destroyers returned to Singapore to drop off the survivors, refuel and replenish their ammunition. For the next three months Electra escorted convoys to and from Singapore.

On 26th February 1942, Electra arrived at Surabaya along with 14 other ships. The next day the striking force left Surabaya, the three British destroyers in the lead, with Electra in the centre. That afternoon, they made contact with the enemy. Electra managed to evade the shells and torpedoes in the first round. At 17:15, Exeter received a hit which destroyed a 4-inch gun mount and then exploded in a boiler room, causing her to lose speed. At 17:25, seeing that Exeter was in trouble, Electra headed toward the enemy ships, followed by the other two British destroyers, to cover Exeter's escape. After several near misses from gunfire from the Japanese light cruiser Jintsū, Electra fired back, scoring several hits on Jintsū and the destroyer Asagumo disabling her engines, she also managed to score hits on destroyers Minegumo and Tokitsukaze. During this slugging match, Electra sustained several hits, which knocked out A and X gun mounts, wrecked the electrical system forward, cut off all communications, destroyed a searchlight platform, damaged the after boiler room, and ruptured the main steam line. Electra came to a stop, fired off her torpedoes, and started to list to port. After a fire started under 'B' gun mount and 'Y' mount ran out of ammunition, abandon ship was ordered. One surviving whaleboat got away after being loaded with wounded, but it was destroyed by a shell shortly after. She sank shortly afterwards on the afternoon of 27th February 1942, bow first, with the White Ensign still flying. 119 of the crew of 173 died including OS Smith.

HMS Electra

ROLAND ERNEST TEBBUTT was serving as a Seaman aboard HM Trawler Gairsay of the Royal Navy Patrol Service when he was killed on active service on 3rd August 1944. He was aged 31 and is commemorated on Lowestoft Naval Memorial, his body never being recovered from the sea.

He was the son of Joe and Clara Tebbutt of Higham Ferrers, Northants. Before the war he worked as a leather dresser and in May 1940 married Edna Sheffield.

HM Gairsay was an Isles class trawler built in 1941 for anti-submarine patrols and was armed with 1 x 12 pounder and 3 x 20mm Anti-Aircraft Guns and 30 depth charges. She was in action during the Normandy Landings from 6th June 1944 as an anti-submarine escort. After this she formed part of the Trout Line to the east of Sword Beach. This was a line of various vessels protecting the landing beaches from German attacks from Le Havre. On 3rd August 1944 Gairsay was sunk by a remote controlled motor launch packed with explosives. 31 crew members were lost including Seaman Tebbutt.

HM Trawler Gairsay

RICHARD JAMES HENRY WHEATLEY was serving as a Lance Bombardier with 148 (The Bedfordshire Yeomanry) Field Regiment, The Royal Artillery when he died on active service on 20th August 1943. He was aged 25 and is buried in Kanchanaburi War Cemetery in Thailand.

He was the son of Florence Wheatley of Newton Blossomville, Buckinghamshire.

At the outbreak of the war, 148th (Bedfordshire Yeomanry) Field Regiment RA was assigned to the 18th (East Anglian) Infantry Division. Initially commanding two batteries (419 and 420), the third battery (512) was formed in the regiment in June 1941 and equipped with 25 pounder field guns.

The regiment was transferred to Singapore with its division, and were in action for 3 weeks against the Japanese. After the water supply was cut of the garrison of Singapore surrendered on 15th February 1942. The men of 148 Field Regiment were put to work cleaning up Singapore. After this they were put into railway trucks and travelled for 5 days with only water and boiled rice as ration to Bangpong in Siam, now Thailand. They then faced a 125 mile march through the jungle during a monsoon, any man falling ill was dragged int the jungle and shot. They arrived at Wampo Prisoner of War camp and worked 18 hours a day on the infamous “Death Railway” between Siam and Burma. They were given very little food and supplemented their diets by eating rats, snakes and baboons. The railway was completed in a year and they spent another 18 months maintaining it. Lance Bombardier Wheatley died of cholera on 20th august 1943. He was originally buried in the camp burial ground before being re-interred in Kanchanaburi in 1946.