January 1942
At the start of the year, the squadron was still based out of Sumburgh in the Shetland Islands, with a detachment flying from Dyce. Daily life consisted of training both on the ground and in the air, the occasional Norwegian patrol, but, more often than not, the unit members were stuck on the ground putting up with the severe limitations of Scottish weather.
During these early years of the war, the Kreigsmarine was still a potent force with battleships, battle cruisers, cruisers and a pocket battleship still threatening the seas. High-grade iron ore from Sweden was shipped from Narvik to Germany, and freighters along the coast transported other cargo so invaluable to the Reich. These vessels became primary targets for the 404 Blenheims.
Several new members of 404 Squadron arrived at this time. Posted in from No. 2 (C) OTU were Sgt Moore (Observer), Sgt Wilson (WAG), Sgt Knowles (WAG), Sgt Bennett (Observer), Sgt Morrow (Pilot) and Sgt Griffith (WAG). It was not long before these gentlemen were hard at work partaking in the never ceasing training flights, learning about their aircraft.
Life on the ground could be dangerous even without the prospect of enemy action. On 8 January, AC2 Stanley Leslie Gregory was killed when he walked into an airscrew. A Board of Inquiry was held the same day and the accident was deemed to be the result of an error in judgment. A moment's inattention had cost a squadron member his life.
On 15 January, two squadron crews were involved in air-to-air combats. P/O Inglis was flying Blenheim 'Q' Z5736 on a South Stab (the name of a patrol area) patrol off the Norge coast when his observer spotted a He.111 flying at 50 feet. Inglis attacked from astern, seeing strikes from the rear gunner's position, along the fuselage and into the engine. Inglis quickly banked away to allow his rear-gunner to fire a long burst into the 111. The Heinkel jettisoned its bombs while Inglis returned for another quarter attack, followed by the enemy making 'S' turns back towards Norway. A second attack was also seen to pour tracer into the wing root and fuselage. One He.111 was claimed as 'probable'.
S/L McHardy in 'X' 6279 was patrolling at 1000 feet when a He.115 was spotted at sea level three miles to port. McHardy put in three attacks with long bursts, the first being in complete surprise. The Blenheim's gunner also fired. The He.115 climbed steeply attempting to escape into cloud, with smoke emitting from the port engine and fuselage, McHardy again attacked the struggling aircraft from below until his ammunition was exhausted. The enemy aircraft was starting to lurch and its nose was starting to dip when contact was lost. The 115 was claimed as 'possible'.
January in Sumburgh was not pleasant, especially if you wanted to fly, let alone get outside for a breath of fresh air. The Squadron War Record summed up its progress:
"Great difficulty has been experienced in making much progress in training during January, owing namely to very inclement weather, and operational requirements. However, during the few finer periods every effort was made to get the new crews into the air on navigational exercises, formation, local reconnaissance, air-firing and night flying practice. In spite of difficulties, the crews are shaping very satisfactorily."
Every new day brought increased attempts to get the aircraft in the air. One such attempt, on 30 January, resulted in the loss of aircraft 'T' V5735 when S/L McHardy, testing the runways, slid off the icy surface and damaged the aircraft beyond the ability of the unit to repair. ".more spare parts as we are very short of same " This quickly brought an end to flying duties for the day.
It was not without reason that Sumburgh was known as that 'awful place'. Sgt Bobbie Schoales, a veteran pilot of 404, summed up his feelings about the Shetland Islands in the following poem (a copy of which is in the scrapbook dated 18 June, 1942):
| The bloody town's a bloody mess, No bloody trains nor bloody bus, No one cares for bloody us, Ho! Bloody Shetlands. |
| The bloody roads are bloody bad, The bloody folks are bloody mad. They make the brightest – bloody sad Ho! Bloody Shetlands. |
| All bloody clouds and bloody rain, No bloody curbs, no bloody drains, The Council’s got no bloody brains, Oh! Bloody Shetlands. |
| Everything so bloody dear,
A bloody bob for bloody beer, And is it good! No bloody fear, Oh! Bloody Shetlands. |
| The bloody flicks are bloody old,
The bloody seats are bloody cold, You can't get in for bloody gold, Oh! Bloody Shetlands. |
| The bloody dances make you smile, The bloody band is bloody vile, It only cramps your bloody style, Oh! Bloody Shetlands. |
| No bloody sport, no bloody games, No bloody fun, few bloody dames, Who won’t even give their bloody names, Oh! Bloody Shetlands. |
| Best bloody place is bloody bed, With bloody ice on your bloody head, You might as well be bloody dead, As in the bloody Shetlands. |
At the end of the month, the squadron had 19 aircraft - 18 Blenheim Mk IVs and one Mk I, in service.
February 1942
RAF Station Sumburgh Attacked by Lone Ju.88
A lone German aircraft shook the every day grind of life on station at Sumburgh on 1 February. Late in the afternoon, the Ju.88 dropped a 500 and 200 pound bomb on the station, which fell beyond the hangar lines causing little damage. After the bombs had been dropped, the 88 returned to strafe the barracks and hangar areas. As a result of the gunfire, six airmen were injured. Two of the injured succumbed to their wounds; AC1 DM Clark and AC2 N Leitch. Seven squadron aircraft were hit and rendered temporarily unserviceable for seven days. Gowler described the incident in his diary;
"I was out on the dispersal on "C" for the first time when Jerry came over. He first riddled our huts with machine guns killing Leech in our hut Erickson had his life saved by the bullet striking "Speed's" shaving kit and then a pepper shaker which ricocheted the bullet past his head. One bullet struck about four feet from my bed. He then flew over the hangars and shot Clark who only lived a little while and shot the hangars and planes full of holes with explosive cannon shells and machine gun bullets. The kite I had just finished the major on ("B") was struck in a half dozen places...Cpl Pooley had a bullet go through all his clothes and greatcoat and roughened his skin at the same time (pretty close)."
After this loss, training once again took precedence with the newer members of the unit doing numerous circuits and bumps. For the older members of 404 Squadron, many had to adjust to wearing higher ranks as authority for many promotions was received from Records.
Operationally, things were rather quiet for the next few weeks with only three patrols having any success. On 7 February, F/L Foster and crew tangled with a Ju.88 while on a Norwegian patrol and claimed several hits ('damaged'). That same day, F/S GDC Bell and crew severely damaged a He.111. On 9 Feb, an He.111 was claimed as 'damaged'.
On 10 February, Gowler notes in his diary that Flin Flon Floosie III had been involved in a combat and 'got shot up'. It was also noted that the 'Jerry' was shot up as well.
Yet again, Gowler's comments are an invaluable resource when researching life on the squadron during the early war years. Security was high on people's minds, and fears of enemy actions, especially after the recent attack on the aerodrome, were always present. He noted the loss of two 235 Sqn Beaus on 11 February and one more on the 12th. "We fear that there has been some saboteurs at work on them" Nothing further of these fears is found in squadron records.
Life on squadron was not always glamorous. Here are two armourers checking the guns of a Blenheim's rear turret. At left is AC1 JD Ayers of Vancouver and at right is LAC CR Watt of Montreal (PL 7691). Ten days later, Sgt Schoales and his crew in 'C' had a bit more luck when they met several Me.109 fighters off the Norge coast. In a running battle, Schoales turned to intercept the enemy aircraft that was closing on his rear, but the German over flew the Blenheim. A second Me.109, also closing from the rear, became the target of a rather excited rear gunner who fired over 400 rounds of ammunition from each gun. The German aircraft fell away into a vertical dive towards the sea with flames pouring from the engine. The Blenheim received only minor damage. On these occasions, none of the 404 aircrew had been hurt.
However, the squadron's good fortunes ran out on 21 February. Blenheim 'F' V5433 crashed on Gurnay Island, Outer Skerries, Shetlands, while returning from a Norwegian recce flight. Pilot F/S CDG Brown, observer F/S JH Oliver and WAG Sgt TW Coy died in the crash. The Squadron's War Record wrote about their final moments as follows:
"An SOS had been received at 0830 hours by Flying Control, No.18 Group, approximately 40 minutes after the aircraft was due to leave the Norwegian coast. At 0840 hours, and SOS was received at Sumburgh and a message that the Wireless Transmitter (W/T) was unserviceable; also a bearing of 045 degrees true was obtained. Further bearings were taken and from 0851 to 0951 hours the aircraft was plotted by fighters as coming in steadily on its course. (When located after crashing) the aircraft was burnt out, but the rear part of the fuselage and tail, which were whole, were found to have a number of bullet holes in them. On interviewing the Coast Guard, it was found that the aircraft had approached the outer Skerries on one engine and apparently in difficulty. It crashed in attempting a landing on a small flat area on an island and had caught fire. It was felt that the aircraft was intercepted some distance off the Norge coast and during the engagement was probably damaged by enemy fire."
Seven days later, the bodies of F/S Brown and F/S Oliver were interred at Lerwick with full military honours. The body of Sgt Coy was returned to his parents' home.F/S Oliver (L) and pilot F/S Brown, shown in a photo taken Aug 1941. This is an actual operational photo taken during a North Sea patrol, likely by Sgt Coy, the WAG. (PL 4789)