V.C. AIRMEN
Flight Sergeant Arthur Louis Aaron, RAFVR, was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross and the Distinguished Flying Medal for extraordinary bravery.
12 August 1943, 11 Stirling Bombers of No.218 (Gold Coast) Squadron of No.3 Group Bomber Command took off from their base at RAF Downham Market, Norfolk. Arthur Louis Aaron and crew took off in a Stirling Mk.III. BF452- HA-O-Orange at 2135 hours to bomb the Fiat Works, Turin, Italy. En route, Aaron flew through southern France to avoid the enemy night fighter bases in the Ruhr, Germany. On their way to the Swiss Alps, they climbed to an altitude of 14,000ft. Aaron, a keen mountaineer before joining the RAF, would have appreciated the challenge of flying over the Alps during this mission. Sadly, that dream was scattered.
Aaron's aircraft became the victim of friendly fire from another Stirling Bomber, not a night fighter as recorded in the Citation.
As the friendly fire homed in on Stirling BF452, a bullet hit Aaron in the face, breaking his Jaw and tearing away part of his face. He was also shot in the lung, and his right shoulder was rendered u/s.
1458181 Flight Sergeant Arthur Louis Aaron. RAF. VC. DFM. Age 21 Died from his injuries on 14 August 1943. Aaron's Headstone Eperlath Reads: "An Example Of Courage Seldom Equalled But Never Surpassed".
Aarons table of operations by Chris Coverdale
Above Photo: Ground crew Armours working in tune with one another to get 218 (Gold Coast) Squadron Stirling Mk.III. BF452 HA 'O'Orange being bombed up and fuelled, ready for the Turin raid on 12 August 1943.
Photos Stephen . C. Smith-218 Squadron Association.
Above Photo: Stirling EF452 HA-'O' Orange after crash landing at Bone airfield (now Annaba), Algeria, North Africa. Base personnel can be seen checking the aircraft cockpit exterior, looking at the bullet holes, which came from friendly fire, another Stirling air gunner who sadly mistook Aaron's Stirling as a fighter aircraft! From the photo, it is clear that Stirling EF452 has become a source of spare parts, also called a Christmas tree in RAF Terms.
Stirling photos Stephen . C. Smith-218 Squadron Association.
THE AARON PAGE IS CURRENTLY UNDER CONSTRUCTION
SQUADRON LEADER IAN WILLOUGHBY BAZALGETTE RAFVR. VC. DFC.
PATHFINDERS 635 SQUADRON
Ian Willoughby Bazalgette was born on 19 October 1918 at Calgary General Hospital in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
Ian Bazalgette first enlisted in the Royal Artillery on 16 July 1939. What followed was a three-month intensive course. He was with the 51st Searchlight Regiment near Shrivenham, Swindon, Oxfordshire. In September 1940, Bazalgette was posted to No. 51 Highland Searchlight Regiment, Aberdonians, Scotland. There, Ian would receive his commission as 2nd Lieutenant, in charge of the first radar-controlled searchlights positioned to protect Edinburgh, Scotland, across the Firth of Forth. After a few months of this, it's said he wrote to his sister and mother, expressing how boring it all was. Eventually, Ian was transferred to the Battery Headquarters as a Staff Officer (All Hush-Hush). He wrote to his mother, telling her he was to fly up to Edinburgh, Scotland, for the first time in an aeroplane. Was this the flight that set the seed, that convinced 2nd Lieutenant Bazalgette that he wanted to be a pilot? A week after the flight to Edinburgh, Scotland, Ian had written a letter to his mother, revealing his growing interest in aviation and his aspiration to become a pilot.
"Now I am engaged in very secret (officially) experiments in searchlight operation at a place close to the mouth of the Forth called Elie. We have some marvellous equipment here, and I am in charge of the whole show, which is quite a responsibility, believe me. I have been getting a taste of what the London A.A. people are getting on duty night and day, so I begin to feel jaded and long for a sight of your old face. Please don't tell anyone where I am (except Dad and Eithel), or that I am engaged in anything unusual." This excerpt highlights the importance of Ian's secret work in searchlight operations, emphasising his role in critical wartime efforts and the need for confidentiality, thereby adding depth to his military biography.
By March 1941, Ian had requested a transfer to join the RAF, which was accepted, and to make things more interesting, Ian had been granted a commission of Pilot Officer upon joining the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve. Ian had to wait until 29 May 1941 for the transfer to take place.
Ian made his way from Scotland to the 22 Elementary Flying Training School at Jesus College, Cambridge, in July 1941. A week or two of navigational work and classroom lectures, before Ian got even to go flying.
According to Ian's Flying Log Book, his first training flight was on 24 July 1941. Ian flew in the De Havilland Tiger Moth (DH 82 A) training aircraft, Serial No. N9380.
