1 P.R.U. ORB help > matching missions

[Adriano Baumgartner]

I know that some of you (members) are like me, fans of the airmen who flew Reconaissance Missions, alone, unarmed and unafraid, over the Reich Territories and overseas.

During the last 5 years I have acquired some PR photographs and am now returning to an early Project of mine, honoring those airmen.

I have matched some of the pictures I do have with the relevant ORB's but do need help with 1 PRU on the following dates/entries/sorties.

Understand this is a long list and could buy the ORB's myself slowly and not bother some of you. I understand though, that this Fórum enable persons to help each other, etc. I am really short of "fuel" this year. Do have some 50 books (Captain Gordon Fox Rule's biography) to donate abroad, etc...so am really asking and begging for help, regarding the 1 PRU Pictures to match.

They are:

1940

Sortie H/358 on 28 July 1940 (W 25/P - BREST)
Sortie H/272 or 278 on 02 October 1940
Sortie H/127 on 26 August 1940
Sortie H/191 on 11 September 1940

1941

Sortie J/859 on 23 October 1941
Sortie A/135 on 29 December 1941
Sortie T/420 on 19 August 1941 (to Wilhelmshaven - as recorded on back)
Sortie H/553 on 02 January 1941 (to a LW aerodrome unidentified)
Sortie W/273 on 26 January 1941 (to Brest - PRU173)
Sortie T/332 on 25 July 1941

1942

Sortie N/630 on 05 October 1942 (to Dantzig)
Sortie C/518 on 02 October 1942
Sortie S/591 on 24 September 1942 (to Lanion LW Aerodrome)
Sortie A/410 on 13 March 1942 (to Berlin/Wandsbeck)
Sortie A/435 on 23 March 1942

I do thank you for any information about the pilot, take off and landing times, machine and serial number and Observation (remarks, targets, route flown, observation from the pilots themselves, etc.)

Sincerely yours
Adriano B.

[Versuch]

Hi Adriano, you are so right that these pilots were a special breed, not having the

publicity or historical kudos they deserve.

Also not all PRU aircraft were unarmed, certainly later Spitfires were armed.

I cannot help with all your requests, but here goes..

28 july 1940, 541 Sqn,St Eval, W25 ,Brest

F/O H Blatchford ,Spitfire P 9313, up 1755 down 2015,2.20 .

The ORB for 541, generally does not match your sortie codes ,for instance 26 Aug 1940

the ORB shows two sorties W47 and W48.

Interestingly the 2 Jan 1941 sortie to unknown LW airfields is not a match...but jammed

in on the top of the page and out of sequence is a sortie from 28 Dec 1940 ,

and this is noted as a "special mission" to Luftwaffe airfields, F/O Robin Spitfire P9550.

Cheers Mike

[Andy Fletcher]

Hi Adriano,

Unfortunately the 1 PRU ORB doesn't start to list sortie references until 16 Jun 42. But for sorties after that date:

S/591; 24 Sep 42; P/O A.G. Paus; Spitfire AB427; Up: 08:15; Down; 09:58; Objective: Channel Isles, Cherbourg, St, Malo; Results: Photos of Lannion, Lézardrieux River.

N/630; 05 Oct 42; F/L J.R.H. Merifiled and P/O W.N. Whalley; Mosquito W4054; Up: -; Down: -; Objective: Narvik; Results: Photos of Narvik, Bogen, Bodo.

C/518 was flown 21 Oct 42 by 542 Sqn; P/O N.L. Bottome; Spitfire AB430; Up: 09:25; Down: 10:40; Objective: Calais, Lille, Boulogne; Results: Photos of Calais, Boulogne.

Hope that helps.

Cheers

Andy Fletcher

[Adriano Baumgartner]

Dear all, Thanks to Mike, Andy and John we do have some matches:

1940

28 July 1940. F/O H. Blatchford (on Spitfire P9313) to W25/BREST, from St. Eval. Took off at 17:55hs. Landed at 20:15hs. Sortie H/358

1941

Sortie T.420. F/O Steventon (on Spitfire R7035) from Benson. Took off at 08:45hs, landed at 14:00hs. Objecitves: Kiel/Wilhelmshaven. Results: Photos of Whilhelmshaven/Cuxhaven and Kiel.

1942

Sortie S.591. P/O Alexander Gemmell Pauls (84117) (on Spitfire AB427). Took off at 08:15hs and landed at 09:58hs. Objectives: Channel Islands, Cherbourg and St. Malo. Results: Photos of Lannion A/D, Lezardrieux River.

Sortie C/518. P/O N L Bottome (the rest as informed by Mike)

ANDY

Regarding Sortie N/630 (from RAF Leuchars), I found:
F/O Bailey (pilot)
NAVIGATOR not informed!
Take off time NOT informed! - landing time: 17:55hs
Mosquito W4058
Objectives: Dantzig / Gdynia / Herla (Herdla or Hela or Halle ?)
Results: Photos of Dantzig and Gdynia

Thanks to the help of some of you, I finally managed to identify some 40-50% of the pictures and sorties!

Some other sorties do need to cross check with the ORB...will need to use Google Map to see some Geographical aspects....like on the case of the sorties of 02 January 1941 and 23 October 1941, for instance, where several missions were flown!!! Really a pitty that the sorties were NOT informed...and one needs to read the entries (manuscript) written by the individuals (pilots) who flew the missions! They do even sign EACH photographic report on Form F.540!!!! Amazing.....really amazing.....some lone flights of some 5-6 hours were recorded on Spitfires PR!!!

I still wonder why some of those heroes did not received a full biography, like that written of the maverik of them all Wing Commander WARBURTON!

Wish I could have more time to dedicate my writtings to some of those alone warriors...

Thanks to all who have helped me so far....do have received quite a lot of help, and it seems that the PR boys are not forgotten by some of us....

Most humbly yours
Adriano S. Baumgartner

[Adriano Baumgartner]

Just a small correction

Pilot Officer Alexander Gemmell Paus (RAFO 84117) > Promoted to P/O rank on the 27th July 1940.

[Kutscha]

As an aside,
W4058 was one of the first Mosquitoes produced and went missing on a PR mission to Trondheim 28.3 43.

[Andy Fletcher]

Originally Posted by Adriano Baumgartner

ANDY

Regarding Sortie N/630 (from RAF Leuchars), I found:
F/O Bailey (pilot)
NAVIGATOR not informed!
Take off time NOT informed! - landing time: 17:55hs
Mosquito W4058
Objectives: Dantzig / Gdynia / Herla (Herdla or Hela or Halle ?)
Results: Photos of Dantzig and Gdynia

Adriano S. Baumgartner

Hi Adriano,

The sortie you list above is N/636. Pilot: F/O K.H. Bayley (not Bailey); Obs: P/O J.M.H. Little. All other details correct.

Details for N/630 are as previously listed.

Cheers

Andy Fletcher