A.M. Dawbarn 312 Czech Squadron

[cz_raf]

Hi all,

for your interest - if you do not know this link to his combat report.

http://www.rafmillom.co.uk/New%20Sou...0341%20No2.htm

[jiri]

Unfortunately, in this image wasn´t a F/Lt Alex Dawbarn, but another member of No 312 Sqdn, a Czech F/O Svatopluk Bachurek. He was later KIA over La Manche on Apr 25, 1942 flying Spitfire with No 124 Sqdn.
Jiri

[jiri]

Dear Tony,
unfortunately, in this image wasn´t a F/Lt Alex Dawbarn, but another member of No 312 Sqdn, a Czech F/O Svatopluk Bachurek. He was later KIA over La Manche on Apr 25, 1942 flying Spitfire with No 124 Sqdn.
Jiri

[Atcham Tower]

Dear Jiri, thanks for that information. My friend Zdenek Hurt told me it was Dawbarn in the photo. He is not usually wrong! I will pass your correction to him.

[Larry Daley]

My father was stationed at least nominally at Valley we lived in Rhosneigr a few miles from there. See my entry

Condors over Irish Sea, chaff and dupple

Have more details that might be of some use:

"Dad was a captain in the Royal Engineers, and doing something secret with the Free-French. He was not too far away, at the Valley Air Force Aerodrome base on this same island of Anglesey. Dad’s degree was in chemistry, from University of Liverpool, not in the humanities; thus I do not know if he did or not speak French. Dad’s Spanish was never fluent, but I do know that in the middle 1930s he was learning it to impress my mother’s father, and once wished grandfather a “Happy New Year!” Dad was trying to say “¡ Prospero Año Nuevo!” Forgetting to pronounce the tilde over Año, much to the amusement of all at the Cuban consulate, Dad had in error altered the salutation into “Happy new anus!”
More likely Dad’s links to France came through Aunt Rosita who like her sister Betinaescaped from France[i] in 1939. Aunt Rosy had left one of her lovers, French Officer Jacques (Jac) Titoux there, and he had fought on with General de Gaul’s forces; surely Dad knew of that for Rosy always liked him as she told me once when she was very old. Written in tiny writing in her diaries,[ii] Rosita’s tales of horror of those times 0in France influenced her sisters in England, and thus must have contributed to my unformed, but real, fear of the Nazi.

Valley Aerodrome, where Dad was stationed helped guard the northwest coast of Wales, the general Liverpool area, extending protection to Belfast and over the Irish sea;[iii] allied bombers and fighters were based there. And it seems from vague memories of rumors of Dad’s war-work clandestine resistance groups that spied on and raided the German forces dominated Europe also resided there. I remember it as a U.S. Airbase but perhaps I am wrong…

An old barely remembered story is that Dad was selected to be a liaison with the Free French by some of the British Army high-brass, who believed he could communicate with the French because Mother spoke Spanish, French, and some Italian, as well as English. This is plausible since Lysander’s light short takeoff and landing aircraft[iv] were stationed at Valley, and these planes were with some frequency used to supply the Resistance in Europe.[v] There was some kind of foul up with the Free French, and Dad got caught in it, but I know no details. Apparently it was some order that Dad had disliked, the Free French were notorious for their sticky pride for that was all they had then, and caused him to resign;\, one day I would like to know why.

[i] Daley, Larry 1999 The Kindness Of Strangers in The Eloquent Umbrella. Published by Linn Benton Community College Albany Oregon. pp. 54-56.

[ii] Daley. Larry 1999 The Kindness Of Strangers. The Eloquent Umbrella. Linn-Benton Community College. Albany Oregon. pp. 54-56

[iii] Airports-Worldwide Com 2004-2007 ” The Station opened on 13 February 1941, in No 9 Group, Fighter Command, and for the first few weeks of its existence was called Royal Air Force Rhosneigr after one of the nearby villages, but was re-named Royal Air Force Valley on 5 April 1941” “At the time the Station opened enemy air activity over this country was still being conducted on a considerable scale and Valley's geographical location made it suitable as a Sector Operations Centre for the control of fighter defences in the approaches to Merseyside and Belfast, as well as the protection of shipping in the Irish Sea. Valley sector was served by a number of radar reporting stations strategically placed in the vicinity to give the widest possible coverage; these were at Nefyn, South Stack, Pen y Bryn, Rhuddlan and Castell Mawr. In addition, there was a GCI station at Trewan Sands for which Valley was responsible. The sand blown on to the airfield from the dunes of Traeth Cymyran by the prevailing westerly wind caused severe problems to aircraft engines and was only eventually resolved by the dumping of tonnes of mud dredged from the nearby lakes of Llyn Penrhyn and Llyn Traffwll. On 3 March 1941, No 312 (Czech) Squadron moved in from Speke with its Hurricanes and began flying convoy patrols over the Irish Sea, and by the time it departed for Jurby on 25 May 1941 it had claimed the destruction of a Ju 88 during one such sortie. It was replaced by No 615 Squadron from Kenley, also flying Hurricanes, and was joined on 10 May by 'A' Flight of No 219 Squadron who brought their Beaufighter IFs on one month's attachment from Tangmere and whose nocturnal activities claimed several enemy aircraft. In the June, 2 sections of Hurricane IIBs of No 302 (Polish) Squadron and one section on No 68 Squadron with Beaufighter IFs arrived at Valley for one month's fighter defence duties. No 456 (Royal Australian Air Force) Squadron formed at Valley on 30 June 1941 with Defiant 1s for night operations under the command of Wing Commander Olive DFC and became operational on 5 September. The Squadron converted to Beaufighter IIs in the same month as operations began, and these in turn were replaced by Beaufighter VIs in June 1942. The Squadron’s first ‘Kill’ came on 10 January 1942 when Squadron Leader Hamilton shot down a Do 217 during a routine night patrol and by the time the Beaufighters were replaced by Mosquito IIs in January 1943 and the Squadron departed for Middle Wallop in the March, 3 more enemy aircraft had been claimed as destroyed.”

[iv] Moore, C., R. E. Lee and others 1998-2001 (accessed 10-10-07) Westland Lysander IIIA. Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. http://www.nasm.si.edu/research/aero...t/westland.htm “As the war entered its third year (1942), the ultimate Lysander mission began to take shape. The Special Operations Executive formed three squadrons of these slow-flying aircraft, 138, 161 and 357 Special Duties squadrons, and began to fly the Lysander to aid the various resistance movements in occupied Europe. They dropped ammunition, explosives, radios and other equipment and transported agents to and from the continent. Westland equipped the Lysander IIIA (SD) specifically for this role, removing the rear guns and adding a ladder near the rear cockpit so that agents could quickly board or exit the airplane. An external fuel tank was also added to increase range. Many times, Lysanders operated from small, unlit fields. These missions were possible only because the airplane had outstanding STOL (short takeoff and landing) performance.”

[v] RAF staff 2006 (accessed 10-10-07) Station History. RAF Valley. Royal Air Force http://www.raf.mod.uk/rafvalley/abou...ionhistory.cfm “On 15 October 1941, No 275 Squadron formed at the Station for air/sea rescue duties for which it was equipped with Walrus and Lysander IIIA aircraft. Earlier in August, Valley had assumed responsibility for 2 air/sea rescue launches which were based at Rhoscolyn Bay close to the airfield; during that month a tragic incident occurred in which the launches were unable to help when a Blackburn Botha (L6417) of No 4 Air Observers School from West Freugh force-landed in rough sea off Rhosneigr beach. The crew were drowned and so also were 11 other people including airmen from the Station who attempted in vain to rescue the crew and were lost when their boat capsized. Two young boys from Rhosneigr fearlessly put to sea in a sailing dinghy in an effort to reach the aircraft, but were unable to save the crew who were swept away by the towering waves which also overturned their little boat. They were fortunately rescued by the spectators on the beach who roped themselves together and waded out to them; for their bravery the 2 boys were awarded The George Cross by The King.”