Arnold G Smith DFM

Smith Arnold George DFM

Posted in: November 1940

S/No: 651289
Rank: Sgt
Trade: W/Op, AG,
Promoted: To F/S between 4-8th April 1942
Award: DFM Gazetted 21st November 1941
Posted Out To 14 O.T.U.
Posted Out To 106 Squadron 20/02/1942

VOLUNTEERED FOR SERVICE 1939

WAR SERVICE 1939 - 1942

49 SQUADRON

28/12/1940 - 16/7/1941

106 SQUADRON

28/3/1942 - 31/7/1942

LAST OPERATION IN LANCASTER R5604

31st JULY 1942 BOMBING RAID ON DUSSELDORF

FAILED TO RETURN

DEATH PRESUMED 1st AUGUST 1942

NO KNOWN GRAVE

COMMEMORATED ON RUNNYMEDE MEMORIAL PANEL 7

INFORMATION ON THE LAST FLIGHT OF LANCASTER R5604
Aircraft Type: Lancaster
Serial number: R 5604
Radio call sign: ZN -
Unit: ATTD 106 SQN RAF

Summary:

Lancaster R5604 took off from RAF Coningsby at 0055 hours on the night of 31/1st
August 1942, detailed to bomb Dusseldorf, Germany. Nothing was heard from the
aircraft after take off and it failed to return to base. R5604 was one of 21 aircraft from the
Squadron on the mission and was carrying an 8000lb bomb.
Crew :

RAF WO P E Merralls, DFC DFM Captain (Pilot)
RAAF 407711 Sgt H E Gaskell, (2nd Pilot)
RAF Sgt K J Cooper, (Observer)
RAF Flt Sgt A G Smith, DFM ( W/OP )
RAF Sgt E F Holme, (Wireless Air Gunner)
RAF Sgt B L Ellis-Buxton, (Air Gunner)
RAF Sgt L T Grimshaw, (Air Gunner)

The aircraft crashed at Lovenach, 9kms WNW of Cologne, Germany and all the crew
were killed.
Five of the crew are buried in the Rheinberg War Cemetery, Locality Kiamp Lintfort,
Nordrhein-Westfal, Germany. Rheinberg is 24kms north of Krefeld and 13kms south of
Wesel.
Flt Sgt Smith and Sgt Grimshaw have no known grave and their names are
commemorated on the Memorial to the Missing, Runnymede, Surrey, UK

Operational Debriefs

28-12-40 Lorient
Hampden P4403 Fisher. Hirons. Smith Palmer. Did not take off.

01-01-41 Bremen
1645. 10 detailed for oil refinery on N.W.Outskirts of Bremen
P 4304 Fisher. Hirons. Smith. Palmer. 1650-2350. Landed at Alconbury.

11/12-01-41 Wilhelmshaven
AD 719 Fisher. Hirons. Smith Graham. 0130-0740. 10/10ths all the way to the target.
Fired at by enemy a/c 30 miles from English coast. Bombed flak concentration.

07-02-41 Channel Ports
1500. 12 stand by to attack shipping & barges.
Photographic recconnaisance to be carried out. 12 took off 2045-2130. 8 bombed target area. successfully. 1 did not see results & 3 successfully bombed alternative targets. Vis: was good - conditions favourable.
P 1176 Bowden. Davies. Bourne. Smith. 2120-0130. Last resort target Ostend attacked. Photographs taken on bombing run and in a run from the opposite direction.

25-02-41 Dusseldorf
11 detailed for a German town - primary D69 - no alternative.
11 airborne. None succeeded in locating target due to cloud.
2 returned to base - 1 with oil pressure high & 1 with W/T failure. 1 landed at Wyton
with W/T failure. 8 bombed. flak & searchlight concentrations.
AD 792 Bowden. Flint. Mossop. Sgt Smith. 1835-0025.

12-03-41 Hamburg
1500. 12 for objectives in Berlin & Hamburg. In the latter the primary target is
shipyards - alternative point B as briefed.
AD 792. Merralls. Smith. Hutt. Atkinson- 1915-0225. Shallow dive made from 10,000ft to 6,500ft & bombed.

17-03-41 Bremen
1600 12 for shipbuilding yards - primary target G R 3586 alternative Bremen

21/22-03-41 Submarine pens at Lorient
AD 805 Merralls. Scorer. Smith. Allen. 1823-0027. Submarines located by pin
point - shallow dive to 4000 ft bombed with stick of 8 on docks & wharf buildings.
Landed at Bassingbourne.

23/24-03-41 Kiel
1600. 6 for causing maximum damage at Kiel. Primary area B. No alternative. Usual reconnaissance to be carried out by photography. 6 took off between 1909-1915 returning 0135-0255.Four were successful.
AD 805 Merralls. Scorer. Smith . Allen. 1915-0250 O.K.

27/28-03-41 Dusseldorf
AD 805 Merralls. Scorer. Smith. Allen. 1935-0100. Bombed Dusseldorf

30/31-03-41 Gardening – Brest
AD 805 Merralls. Allison. Smith.Newall. 1905-0150. Veg: planted and bombs released
on Lauvex-Pourbrie drome at 3000 ft.

09/10-04-41 Berlin
All 12 a/c airborne between 2025 & 2050. 11 were successful in attacking the target. The
unsuccessful one bombed & hit marshalling yards at Schonburg.
AD 805 Merrals. Scorer. Smith. Allen. 2047-0550. Glide from 14000 ft to 11000 ft
spoilt by intense flak & s/lights but rly station & yards bombed at Schonburg.

12/13-04-41 Gardening – Brest
AD 805 Merrals. Scorer. Smith. Allen. 0045-0620.Planted in jellyfish

14/15-04-41 Brest
AD 805 Merrals. Allison. Smith. Allen. 1940-0140. Bombed flak believed to be
coming from the cruisers.*

*Scharnhorst & Gneisenau

17/18-04-41 Berlin
AD 805 Merrals. McMahon. Smith. Allen. 2034-0545. Bombed centre of city.
Searchlight belt intense from Ruhr to Bremen.

12/13-05-41 Mannheim
1100 15 to destroy chemical factory at Mannheim
AD 805 Merralls, Benningfield. Smith. Allen. Bombed after 1/2 hour

16/17-05-41 Cologne
AD 805 Merrals. McCallum Smith. Allen. Via Aldeburg to Koln. Got pin points on
Rhine from flares of other a/c. Bombed on glide from 6000 ft.

25/26-05-41 Gardening – Brest
AD 805 Merralls. McCallum. Smith. Allen. Poor trip navigationally - bad weather necessitating frequent wireless assistance. Searched for 2 hours - unable to fix. Load returned & landed Upper Heyford

27/28-05-41 Gardening - Brest
AD 729 Cooke. McCallum. Smith. Allen. After leaving England boost gauge flickered from -1/2 to - 21/2 engine cut twice in five minutes. Abnormal showers of sparks came from top of cowl & exhaust. Returned.

10/1-06-41 Brest

1050. 14 detailed for Scharnhorst & Gneisenau at Brest & 3 to lay mines in area

Gorse. Photographic reconnaissance. 13 bombing a/c took off & 3 gardeners between 2240 & 2310. All were successful in bombing the estimated target but in many cases the results could not be observed owing to ground haze or smoke screens.
Photographs successful. Flak appeared to come from the cruisers was of a light
nature.
AD 744 Cooke. Smith. McCallum. Thomson. 30 mins in area - unable to identify
ships Bombed as estimated.

12/13-06-41 Hamm
AD 856 Cooke. Stuart, Smith. Thomson. On reaching Hamm saw ME I09 coming in
from stbd. Bombed. Hamm as another 109 was seen some distance away.

13/14-06-41 Brest
1000. 14 for 3charnhorst & Gneisenau at Brest. All airborne 2230 - 2313 - 10/10ths cloud over England, thinner over target area. All crews located the target & bombed either the ships or the dock area. Results were obscure owing to haze & necessary evasive action due to intense flak. Photo flashes successful
AD 805 Cooke. Stuart. Smith. Thomson.

16/17-06-41 Cologne

10000. 14 for bombing Cologne

AD 805 Cooke. Benningfield. Smith Thomson. Difficulty with oil temperature so bombed Ostend & had hang up of 5001b bomb which failed to jettison.

18/19-06-41 Bremen
1030. 13 for bombing on Bremen - no alternative.
14 only took off at intervals commencing 2230. 12 claimed successes.
Of the other two, one bombed flak in the area & the other returned with bombs after
losing time trying to locate the area.. Ground haze made the locating of the target
difficult in many cases. Several were only able to estimate the target but bursts
were seen by all of these.
AD 805 Cooke. Benningfield. Smith. Thomson. – bombed Cuxhaven (Smith log).

22/23-06-41 Bremen
1000. 14 for. Bremen - 2 to carry camera. Alternative 'C' as briefed. Last resort. Semo/Mopa. 13 Only airborne - 2230-2300 & in view of ground haze all had difficulty in locating the primary target. 10 crews therefore estimated the concentration of flak & bombed that. 5 saw bursts consequent upon bombing but results were generally obscured. 1 crew bombed a flare path & another encountered an enemy plane - released it's bombs on the Friesian islands & shot down the enemy.
X 3060 Hirons. King. Smith. Evans. Picked up by s/lights over the Friesians & a/c
seen below. Decided to drop bomb on the island then fired 200 rounds at the a/c
which broke up & fell in flames.

03/04-07-41 Bremen
AD 744 Kerridge. Sanderson. Smith. Hodgkinson. 2240-0530. Searched Bremen.
Bremerhaven & Wilhelmshaven but was unable to locate owing to cloud so brought
bombs back.

05/06-07-41 Osnabruck
AE 203 Kerridge. Saunderson. Smith. Hodgkinson. 2325-0535. Huge fire seen a short
distance to the south just before ETA. Thought to be Osnabrook but later thought to be a dummy. Bombs aimed at light flak further east & 2 bursts seen. Subsequent
navigation seemed to prove that Osnabrook was attacked.

06/07-07-41 Brest
AD 980 EA-V Kerridge. Sanderson. Smith.Hodgkinson. 2325-0535. Glide attack
having pin pointed the river. Saw the dock which was bombed from 7500 ft. Huge
burst seen. Held in s/light cone on return journey & subjected to heavy gun fire.

08/09-07-41 Hamm
AD 909 Kerridge. Sanderson. Smith. Hodgkinson. 2310-0555. Reached Hamm by flak concentration & investigated this for some time. Recognising the river Lippe & canal, bombed from 11000 ft t saw bursts in centre of yard. Fire broke out.

14/15-07-41 Gardening – Heligoland
AD 980 Harvey. Bow. Smith. Mossop.J. Vegetable planted in DR position

16/17-07-41 Hamburg
1005 12 for Hamburg (factories x warehouses) alternatively, the town of Wilhelmshaven as specified. Cameras to maximum capacity.
2250 11 a/c airborne at intervals. 4 successful in bombing the main target & 5 the
alternative targets. Of the two unsuccessful a/c, one jettisoned its' load owing to
drop in oil pressure. The other returned the bombs as cloud obscured the targets.
2 were attacked by enemy fighters and after evasive action, avoided these in cloud.
Several crews saw bursts in the area
AD 744 Harvey. Stead. Smith. A. Tansley. Bombed. Hamburg.

Flight Sergeant Arnold George Smith DFM

49 Squadron 1940/41 Operations

106 SQUADRON RAF CONINGSBY 20/02/42.

DEATH PRESUMED 1 / 8 / 42 NO KNOWN GRAVE

AWARDS

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