Signatures for : Havoc |
A list of all signatures from our database who are associated with this aircraft. A profile page is available by clicking their name. |
Name | Info |
Major Howard B Aines Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by Major Howard B Aines | Major Howard B Aines
Lead Bombardier / Navigator with the 644th Sqn. Flew the first of his 65 combat mission in the A-20 on 4th May 1944.
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Flt Lt Mike Allen DFC Click the name above to see prints signed by Flt Lt Mike Allen DFC
| Died : 6 / 6 / 2001 |
| Flt Lt Mike Allen DFC
Michael Seamer Allen was born in Croydon, Surrey on March 15th 1925, and educated at Hurstpierpoint College, Sussex. He then studied mechanical engineering at night school before being apprenticed to Fairey Aviation. Mike Allen managed with the help of his father to get Fairey Aviaiton to release him, so that he could join the RAF. Allen joined the RAF as a navigator in June 1941 and two months later was paired with Harry White at No 54 Training Unit, at Church Fenton, Yorkshire. They remained together throughout the war. They both joined No 29, a Beaufighter night squadron at West Malling, in Kent before going to No.534 at Tangmere, Sussex, from where they flew Havoc night fighters (converted Douglas Bostons), each equipped with a Turbinlite searchlight in the nose. The notion was that the Havocs would use their radar to search out enemy aircraft, which would then be picked out with the searchlight and shot down by an accompanying Hurricane. In practice, the scheme was none too successful, but Allen regarded the 15 months that he and White spent in Havocs as invaluable training in the art of night fighting. Allen along with Harry White spent a few months ferrying Beaufighters to the Middle East before Mike Allen and Harry White moved to No.141 Squadron having won two Bars to his DFC 1944. Sadlly around this time his parents were killed when a V2 rocket destroyed their house in July 1944. In January 1945 Allen and White had a close shave while taking off on their 91st operational sortie on a bleak evening in January 1945. The engine of their Mosquito failed as the aircraft left the ground, and the fighter nose-dived into a field. White and Alien found themselves in a heap in the cabin, with Allens foot jammed in the fuselage, White pinned underneath him, and the aircraft on fire, Fortunately, a farmer and two labourers who had seen the crash managed to pull them to safety just as the Mosquito went up in flames. Over the course of their partnerhsip they successfully destroyed at least 12 enemy aircraft. Flt Lt Mike Allen left the Royal Air Force in 1946, and began his civilian career working for Avro, the Manchester-based aircraft company, Pye Telecommunications, BTR and Rank Hovis McDougall. In 1966 he moved to South Africa, where he became chairman of the Pretoria branch of the South African Air Force Association. He returned to Britain in 1982 and worked for the Officers Association. In 1999 Mike Allen published the book Pursuit through Darkened Skies.
Flight Lieutenant Mike Allen sadly died at the age of 78 on the 6th of June 2001. Mike Allen had won three DFCs as a navigator and radar operator in night fighters.
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Mike Allen signing art prints of - Returning from Caen - by Graeme Lothian. |
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Lt Colonel Jame F Barkalow Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by Lt Colonel Jame F Barkalow
| Died : 17 / 11 / 2009 |
| Lt Colonel Jame F Barkalow
49 combat mission A-20 Lead Pilot in the ETO. Born in Bradley Beach, he was a resident of Wildwood for over thirty years before residing in Northfield. He was a Lieutenant Colonel in the Untied States Army and served as a pilot with the 410th Bomb Group in the U.S. Army Air Corps in England and France. He received the Distinguished Flying Cross, received nine Air Medals and received the Presidential Distinguished Unit Citation. He was the Commanding Officer of the New Jersey National Guard Division, Cape May County for 19 years. Mr. Barkalow worked as a supervisor for the NJ Bell Telephone Company in Wildwood and Atlantic City for thirty two years. Sadly, Lt Colonel Jame F Barkalow passed away at his home aged 89, on 17th November 2009.
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Staff Sergeant Donald Bjornson Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by Staff Sergeant Donald Bjornson | Staff Sergeant Donald Bjornson
Aerial Gunner with the 645th Sqn. 65 combat missions on the A-20 Havoc, including the Blankenheim Strike.
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Wing Commander Branse Burbridge DSO* DFC* Click the name above to see prints signed by Wing Commander Branse Burbridge DSO* DFC* | Ace : 21.00 Victories |
| Wing Commander Branse Burbridge DSO* DFC*
Posted to 85 Squadron on night-fighters in October 1941, Branse Burbridge flew Havocs on his first tour, scoring just a single claim, but when he returned to 85 Squadron for a second tour - this time on Mosquitos, he was far more successful. During the period of the build up to the invasion of Normandy, and after, together with his radar navigator, Bill Skelton, he claimed 21 victories in a ten month spell. In June 1944 he also shot down three V-1s. With his final air victory, in January 1945, he passed the total set by John Cats Eyes Cunningham to become the highest scoring RAF night fighter Ace of the war.
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Flight Lieutenant Terry Clark Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by Flight Lieutenant Terry Clark | Flight Lieutenant Terry Clark
Terry Clark was born in Croyden on 11th April 1919. Terry Clark joined 615 RAuxAF in March 1938 in Kenley, as an Aircrafthand. Called up in 1939, he joined 615 Squadron, Auxiliary Air force, and flew as a gunner in Hawker Hectors before he qualified as an Air Gunner and also a Radio Observer. He joined No.219 Sqn at Catterick in July 1940 and flew on Beaufighters throughout the Battle of Britain. By September 1940, the conflict had reached its zenith and at night the feared Blitz began in earnest. More radar specialists were needed to deal with the threat so Mr Clark was sent to Beaufighters. He did not receive any training and still wore the AG brevet, but people began to ask why a plane without a gun turret had an air gunner on board, so he was given a badge that said RO. Eventually, in recognition of his new role, Mr Clark was awarded his third flying badge â€" N for Navigator. His job was to track enemy aircraft and guide the pilot towards the selected contact. It was while flying the Beaufighter that he was awarded the DFM on 8th July 1941 after assisting his pilot to down three aircraft at night. He joined 1455 Flight in 1941, forming at Tangmere with Turbinlite Havocs, then flew the same aircraft with 1451 Flight at Hunsdon, locating enemy aircraft by Radar in the Havoc for accompanying fighters to attack and destroy. Commissioned in May 1942 from Warrant Officer and in May 1943 he was posted to No.488 Sqn RNZAF.
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Captain Jerome M Coe Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by Captain Jerome M Coe | Captain Jerome M Coe
Lead pilot with the 647th Sqn. Flew the first of his 61 combat missions in the A-20 on 15 Aug 1944
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Captain Ralph F Conte Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by Captain Ralph F Conte | Captain Ralph F Conte
Navigator / Bombardier, Ralph flew 65 combat missions in the A-20 & A-26
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Captain Narval F Davis Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by Captain Narval F Davis | Captain Narval F Davis
Pilot with the 647th Sqn. 72 combat missions on both the A-20 & A-26, the first on D-Day June 1944.
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First Lt Wayne E Downing Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by First Lt Wayne E Downing | First Lt Wayne E Downing
A pilot, Wayne Downing flew Douglas A20 Havoc light bombers with the 416th Bomb Group, the first Group to fly the A20 in Europe. On D-Day the 416th BG targeted Argentan, a major German troop crossroads, and later in the day a second mission to hit a major marshalling yard. Moving to France in September 1944, in October he converted over to flying the more advanced a26 Invader. Wayne Downing flew a total of 86 combat missions.
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Air Commodore John Ellacombe CB DFC* Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by Air Commodore John Ellacombe CB DFC* | Air Commodore John Ellacombe CB DFC*
John Ellacombe joined the RAF in 1939 and was posted to 151 Squadron in July 1940, immediately converting to Hurricanes. On 24th August he shot down a He111, but a week later his Hurricane was blown up in combat and he baled out, with burns. Rejoining his squadron a few months later, in February 1941 was posted to 253 Squadron where he took part in the Dieppe operations. On 28th July, flying a Turbinlite Havoc, he probably destroyed a Do217. Converting to Mosquitos, John was posted to 487 Squadron RNZAF, and during the build up to the Normandy Invasion and after, was involved in many ground attacks on enemy held airfields, railways, and other targets of opportunity. He completed a total of 37 sorties on Mosquitos. Flying a de Havilland Mosquito XIII with a devastating set of four 20mm cannon in the nose, John Ellacombe flew deep into occupied France on the night before D-Day searching out and destroying German convoys and railway targets. As the Normandy campaign raged on, 151 Squadron intensified its interdiction sorties - including night attacks on Falaise and the Seine bridges. On August 1st Ellacombe took part in the famous attack by 23 Mosquitoes on the German bar-racks in Poitiers, led by Group Captain Wykeham Barnes. Ellacombe had first joined 151 Squadron during the Battle of Britain, direct from Flying Training School. Within weeks he had scored his first victory but also force landed in a field, having shot down a He 111, and baled out of a blazing Hurricane. He baled out a second time during the Dieppe Raid in 1942 but was picked up safely. Postwar he had a long and successful career in the RAE.
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Captain John Fitch Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by Captain John Fitch | Captain John Fitch
Joining the Army Air Corps in 1941 he began his service flying the A-20 Havoc in North Africa. Volunteering for a second tour in 1944 he joined the 335th Fighter Squadron, 4th Fighter Group initially flying P-47s and on 18th November 1944 he shot down an Me262 over Germany. Transferring to P-51s he was shot down in March 1945 whilst strafing a train, and was taken prisoner. After the war he became a successful Grand Prix racing driver and an icon of the racing industry.
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Squadron Leader John Hall, DFC* Click the name above to see prints signed by Squadron Leader John Hall, DFC* | Squadron Leader John Hall, DFC*
Squadron Leader John Hall, DFC and Bar (85 Sqn. Pilot) joined the RAF in 1940 and after gaining his wings, followed by operational training at Cranfield, near Bedford, he joined 85 Squadron, then stationed at Hunsdon, in the North Weald sector. At that time, 85 Squadron flew twin engine Havocs, a night fighter version of the American light bomber, the Boston, with the radar operator where the Boston’s gun turret would have been and 12 machine guns in the nose, in place of the Boston’s navigator. The radar then was the Mark 4, not very reliable, and with a very limited range. During 1942, the Squadron re-equipped with the much faster and more maneuverable Mosquito, with a scanner in the nose for the infinitely more effective Mark 8 radar and 4 cannon, [instead of the Havoc’s 12 machine guns] After a rest from operations, during which he taught budding night fighter pilots air gunnery, John Hall teamed up with John Cairns as his navigator/ radar operator and they joined 488 New Zealand Night Fighter Squadron at Bradwell Bay on the Essex coast, destroying three German bombers during the mini-blitz of early 1944. The Squadron flew over the D-day beaches from Zeals, and Colerne in Wiltshire, before moving at the end of 1944 to Amiens Glisy in northern France and then to Gilze Rijen in Holland, where it celebrated VE Day. During this time Hall shot down a further 5 German aircraft over France and Germany.
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Major Charles D LaMond Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by Major Charles D LaMond | Major Charles D LaMond
Pilot with the 644th Squadron. 41 combat missions in the A-20.
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First Lt Leonard R McBride Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by First Lt Leonard R McBride | First Lt Leonard R McBride
416th B G A-20 & A-26 pilot on 65 combat missions
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Lt Colonel Arthur R Milow Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by Lt Colonel Arthur R Milow | Lt Colonel Arthur R Milow
Arthur Milow was Commanding Officer of the 643rd Squadron, 409th Bomb Group, and commanded a total of 66 combat missions flying the Douglas A20 Havoc, and A26 Invader. He flew combat missions during the D-Day operations, and later took part in the Battle of the Bulge.
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Captain John L Minech Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by Captain John L Minech | Captain John L Minech
A pilot with the 647th Squadron, 410th Light Bomb Group, John Minech flew the first of his sixty-five combat missions in May 1944, flying the Douglas A20 Havoc. he flew two missions on d-Day itself, the second of which was a low level attack at 300ft during the evening. He flew thirty-five missions as a Flight Leader, and was Squadron Operations Officer for 5 months. He flew in Europe until the end of the war.
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Colonel Daniel F Shea Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by Colonel Daniel F Shea | Colonel Daniel F Shea
46th B G. Graduate of West Point. 65 missions as A-20 & A-26 pilot.
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Vivian Snell Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by Vivian Snell
| Died : 21 / 2 / 2010 |
| Vivian Snell
Battle of Britain Hurricane pilot with No.501 Sqn. Shot down over Cranbrook on 25th October 1940 while flying Hurricane P2903, bailing out uninjured. During his service life Vivian flew the Fairy Battle with 103 Squadron, later flying the Hawker Hurricane with 151 and 501(F) Squadrons during the Battle of Britain in 1940. Vivian shot down a Bf109E on the 25th October 1940 and was then shot down himself while piloting Hurricane Mk.I serial N2438. After having minor wounds attended to he returned to his squadron and flew through the rest of the Battle of Britain. In 1941 he was flying the American built Douglas DB7 Havoc night fighter with number 85(F) Squadron. He commanded his own Mosquito Squadron towards the end of the War. Vivian was released from the RAF in 1946 with the rank of Wing Commander.
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Colonel Dick Wheeler Click the name or photo above to see prints signed by Colonel Dick Wheeler | Colonel Dick Wheeler
416th B. G. Graduate of West Point. A-20 & A-26 combat pilot in the ETO from Jan 1944 to Aug 1945.
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