161 Squadron RAF

[Ned Wobmit]

Does anybody know anything about the history of 161 Sqn during WWII. I am carrying out some research on a French chap called Maurice DUMESNIL and would like to know whether or not French pilots flew with 161 Sqn

Any help you can give would be great.

[dennis markson]

hi ned 161 is well documented so try on line the web site and the books about the missions, was Dumesnil aircrew, or was he an oas operative, I have been researching a mission that my uncle was killed on ,night of 8/9-aug 1944 also try Bob Bodys site he was a great help fo me..dennis

[Ned Wobmit]

Dennis, Thanks for your reply, I have done quite a bit of research on-line already but have turned nothing up, unfortunately. I know DUMESNIL was a pilot before the war and have documents telling me that he used to fly for CIDNA (later Air France) upto 1938 but after that it goes a bit blank. That said he may have been SOE as I also have letters saying he was connected in some way to Maurice Buckmaster who (I believe) was the leader of a resistance network.

[dennis markson]

I don't know if this is the same person , and my french is not that good but a Dumenil de Grammont was flowen out of france on a hudson 21/22 sept 43 operation peashooter, pick up was "JUNOT" nnw of pont-de-vaux snr Verity was the pilot, so there could be just a mixup between christian and surname, but it is the spelling .if it is and you need to know more come back to me dennis

[Adriano Baumgartner]

Hello NED and Dennis!
I am very interested as well on 161 Squadron´s record. I can suggest to you NED, the book of S/L Verity: "We landed by moonlight" from Crécy Publishing ( check on the Net ). There are other books too, like: THE SOE in France by famous Historian M.R.Foot. I remember a book, whose tittle I can not remember by heart, which was written by S/L Livry-Levell a famous French Navigator.
There are much more, off course. Hope to have helped so far. You can also try to contact the French Underground Association ( there are quite a lot of them ) or Museums.
Yours very friendly
Adriano

[phil]

161 was a small unit and operated secretly even bomber command wasn't informed about certain ops 161 base Tempsford there is still a chappel and small museum dedicated to that unit
even above belgium hudsons were chot down by mistake they carried dutch resistance crew

[Ex Shack]

Hi Ned
"Maurice Buckmaster who (I believe) was the leader of a resistance network".
Buckmaster was the Operational Head of SOE
Regards
Dick