[kiwicampbell]

Thank you very much for your replies.
Going by the eyewitness report I have , locals in the lengerich /wechte area saw an airborne explosion which resulted in the Lancaster wreckage being spread over a few hundred yards.

going by this I gather that the aircraft was likely shot down by a night fighter. The lone survivor sgt H Lea was listed as the rear gunner who ended up in stalag luft 7.

From what I have found on the Internet some of the lancasters on that raid were
Allocated to bomb a night fighter base which I don't recall its location.

I wonder if the mentioned bf110 pilot shot down ND988 also .

Cheers for the information gentlemen

Mike