Campaign Groups and Pairs
The main briefing began in a tense atmosphere of absolute silence, but when the curtain was drawn aside the silence was broken - Berlin again! This was our sixteenth operational briefing, six of which were to the ‘Big City’. The route was almost straight, and the weather conditions were far from ideal.
As we waited, I found it difficult to relax, subconsciously I wanted to get going and get it over with. However the take-off time was delayed by several hours, until around midnight because of deteriorating weather. This was the most stressful period of the day, and an air of tension surrounded us. All of us Air Gunners were taken for our own briefing with the Gunnery Officer.
While waiting for take-off, I found myself looking back over the last year, I had completed my training as an air gunner at Stormy Down in South Wales, been through O.C.U. where I became the member of the crew that I was going to fly with on operations. After a few weeks at O.C.U. with my crew flying Lancasters, we were posted to 12 Squadron… where we flew on operations as part of ‘A’ Flight…
My crew were:
Pilot - F/O J. G. Bryson F/Eng - Sgt. D. F. Fadden Navigator - Sgt. T. F. M. Roxby Bomb Aimer - F/Sgt. P. W. Evans M/U Gunner - Sgt. J. J. Sawkins W/O Air Gun. - Sgt. J. Donnan
and myself Sgt. W. C. Gundry, as Rear Gunner….
As New Year’s Day was drawing to a close, our Lancaster, along with all the other aircraft was preparing for take-off. As we queued at the end of the runway with the pilot carrying out his checks, he was given the green light and with the engines roaring at full power, we started rolling. I had my turret centralised and was looking back at the ground receding from my view. Then we were airborne, climbing to our operational height, and on our way at last.
The sky was dark and overcast, and we found ourselves flying through layers of broken cloud as we headed East over the North Sea. The bomber stream had spread out and we appeared to be on our own. I listened to the routine exchanges on the intercom, and knew that we were over the Dutch coast. The pilot gave us gunners a sharp reminder to keep watch on all aircraft. In the distance bursts of anti-aircraft shells could be seen bursting against the sky, and I gave a brief shudder as the dangers ahead flashed across my mind.
So far, our trip had been uneventful as we had not had any intervention from the German defences. The Navigator gave a slight change of course and we were due over our target in another hour. Our pilot once again told us to keep a sharp look out for fighters.
The time was coming up to 02.25am, when suddenly there was a series of terrific thuds which appeared to shake the aircraft, and the steady drone of the engines became a jarring scream as the plane started to bank away to starboard. I was startled by the attack, as neither myself of the mid-upper gunner had seen any fighters about. Suddenly the order to abandon the aircraft came over the intercom and I started rotating my turret to centralise it, but had some difficulty. My relief can be imagined when I did finally get it centralised. I climbed out of the turret and had the presence of mind to grab my parachute from the storage rack, and clipping it onto my harness I scrambled over the tail spar and got to the rear fuselage door. This was already open, so I assumed that some of the crew had already jumped. I sat on the edge of the fuselage and rolled out. What a great relief it was to see my parachute open above my head. As I was floating gently down to earth, I became aware of the drone of aircraft flying above me in the darkness. I was falling through thick cloud, but within seconds so it seemed, I landed on soft ground in an open space. Releasing my harness, I gathered up my parachute and hurried across to a clump of trees that I could see where I buried it as best I could.
I then sat on the ground expecting something to happen, but nothing appeared to stir around me. I was alone. I started walking to get away from the area where I had landed but I was really groping in the dark. The ground was soft and wet, and it started snowing. Eventually I came to a farm where I found a barn and holed up in it to rest. I remained there for some time, and must have fallen asleep. Suddenly I heard strange voices, I realised that they were German voices, but as they did not approach in my direction, I decided to stay where I was until the next day. I lay there thinking about what had happened as none of the crew had reported seeing anything, yet the aircraft seemed to have been hit from underneath. I wondered what had happened to the rest of the crew. The night passed slowly, I was very thirsty and hoped that I would soon be able to get some water. I decided to leave the barn, but as I left, two farm hands suddenly appeared in front of me. They made some remark and beckoned me towards them, when another man and woman appeared and tried to talk. I was taken into the house and given some water to drink and some dark bread to eat. Later two uniformed policemen arrived and escorted me to their station. Next morning I was taken to the railway station at Nieuburg, accompanied by two policemen who were to take me to the Dulag-Luft at Frankfurt-on-Main. There I met up with the rest of my crew, and was informed by the Dulag officer that my pilot and navigator had both died. After spending a couple of days at Dulag we were taken in cattle trucks to Stalag IVB in Muhlberg-on-Elbe where I remained until liberated by the Russians on 23rd of April 1945. I arrived back home on May 15th.
Regarding the rest of my crew, Sgts. Donnan and Sawkins baled out and landed safely. F/Sgt. Evans and Sgt. Fadden were thrown free when an explosion blew the nose of the aircraft. The pilot, F/Officer Bryson, and the navigator, Sgt. Roxby were both killed, and are buried in the Hannover War Cemetery.’
Gundry advanced to Warrant Officer in May 1945. Research suggests the possibility that Gundry’s Lancaster was one of six shot down that night by night fighter ‘Ace’ Heinrich Prinz zu Sayn-Wittgenstein.
Sold with three photographs of recipient in uniform, and Second War campaign medal enclosure, a hand-written account by recipient about the sortie during which he was shot down, and copied research.
www.dnw.co.uk all lots are illustrated on our website and are subject to buyers’ premium at 24% (+VAT where applicable)
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