They Spread Their Wings (12 page)

Things remained quiet until June 4th when orders were received for three crews and aircraft to be despatched for special duties at RAF Predannack in Cornwall. This mysterious project captured everyone’s imagination and the crews selected were mine, Flt Lt Joe Singleton with Fg Off Geoff Haslam (Nav) and Fg Off Jimmy Wootton with Plt Off John Dymock (Nav). That same day was spent in preparing ourselves and our aircraft to leave but rain and low cloud prevented departure.

Much of the following day was spent swinging the compasses and re-harmonising the guns of DZ688, DZ685 and DD757 (my aircraft), the Mosquitoes assigned to the Predannack operation. These aircraft were from among those employed on the Ranger operations so they had had the AI equipment removed and a Gee navigation aid installed. By teatime on the 5th the wind had freshened somewhat and the clouds had lifted sufficiently to allow us to embark on our detachment to No 264 Squadron’s base.

It was made clear on our arrival at Predannack that the main task of these composite squadron operations, code-named Instep, is to patrol the Bay of Biscay in an attempt to intercept and destroy enemy aircraft – notably Junkers Ju 88s – that were interfering with Coastal Command’s anti-submarine patrols. No time was lost and we began operations immediately. At 18.00 in the evening of June 7th Joe Singleton with his navigator Geoff Haslam and me with Mike, took off in company with two other Mossies from the Australian No 456 Squadron and headed south across the wide open spaces of the Bay of Biscay.

It was strange flying over an expanse of sea, out of sight of land for so long, heading ever further south towards the north coast of Spain. After an uneventful flight in loose formation we turned at the end of the patrol line at latitude 46.00N, longitude 04.15W. Coming round onto the northerly heading I spotted a smudge of smoke to starboard and reported it to Joe who was formation leader. Course was altered and our formation came up with a fishing vessel that was identified as a French trawler named
Tadorne
. We had been briefed to watch out for such ships, as they were suspected of passing on information about Coastal Command aircraft to the Ju 88 squadrons. Since all fishing vessels had been warned by leaflet drops to keep out of the area Joe had no hesitation in going in to attack.

DH Mosquito NFII, DD739, of No 456 Squadron as used on Instep patrols in 1943 with AI Mk V radar removed from the nose, but wing antennae retained. (J. Cheney Collection)

Ordering me and one of the 456 boys to orbit as top cover, Joe told Plt Off John Newell (with Nav Flt Sgt Allen Keating) of 456 to go line astern and follow him down to attack. They each carried out two strafing runs on the vessel and hits were registered all over the centre of the target, which stopped dead in the water, on fire and with clouds of smoke and steam billowing from it. We reformed on Joe’s aircraft and returned to Predannack without further incident. [Research later revealed that the Vichy vessel
Tadorne
operated from La Rochelle and was pressed into German navy service as UJ–2218 in the role of an armed auxiliary sub-hunter. The attack took place 110 nautical miles west of La Pallice, during which the trawler was badly damaged with casualties of three dead and five injured, but despite this damage the vessel managed to return to La Rochelle.]

There was yet more excitement a couple of days later when I was part of a patrol that made contact with five Ju 88 long-range fighters over the Bay. In the ensuing fracas, one Ju 88 was destroyed by Joe Singleton: the first ‘kill’ by a No 25 Squadron Mosquito.

Our patrol of six Mosquitoes, led by Joe, took off from Predannack during the afternoon of June 11th. Jimmy Wootton was flying as No 2; I was No 3 and three of the 456 crews made up the second section. Shortly after takeoff, Flt Lt Gordon Panitz (with Nav Fg Off Richard Williams) of 456 had to break away and return to base with engine trouble, while the rest of us continued on our way in a loose vic formation at sea level. When nearing the end of the outward leg, about 130 miles off the north-west tip of Spain, Jimmy spotted a formation of five Ju 88s through the broken cloud. They were flying in loose echelon at 5,000 feet almost directly above us. Well, this was what we had come for!

Immediately, Joe ordered our formation to close up and started a climb up-sun of the enemy. He called for Jimmy Wootton (25) and John Newell (456) to stay with him and for me to take Flt Sgt Richardson (456) and operate as a separate section and keep an eye out for the Ju 88s’ top cover element. However, at this point my radio decided to pack up so, although Richardson closed up on me, we were unable to make contact with the enemy before the Ju 88s broke off the engagement. When we reached base again, Joe told me what happened.

He said his section was seen by the enemy early in the climb to get up-sun. The 88s started a climbing orbit in loose line astern, firing off a burst of red star flares as they did so. Joe replied by firing off his own Very pistol in the hope of adding to the confusion and gain time to claw more height. Both formations tried to turn up-sun of each other and when the enemy aircraft were about 2,000 feet above, he gave the order to break formation and for everyone to choose their own target. Several of the enemy opened fire and Joe, selecting the rearmost, turned inside it and opened fire with a full deflection shot from 800 yards range. The burst hit the Ju’s port engine and thick smoke poured out. Further bursts of cannon brought even more flames and smoke and the enemy aircraft turned slowly over onto its back and dived into the sea, where a large oil patch marked its entry. Jimmy Wootton and John Newell between them claimed three more as damaged before they hightailed it off home.

The next day, officialdom caught up with Joe Singleton. He was declared ‘tour expired’ and returned with Geoff Haslam in DD757 to Church Fenton where they received a great welcome as a result of their success. They were replaced at Predannack by ‘B’ flight commander, Flt Lt Baillie and his navigator, Plt Off Burrow in Mosquito DD738.

Map of the Biscay area in which Instep patrols, involving Jack Cheney, were flown, June 1943. (Author)

It was on 13 June 1943 that disaster overtook Jack Cheney and the following entry from No 25 Squadron Operations Record Book (Form 540) reveals what happened:

Late today unpleasant news was received from Predannack. Two crews, Fg Off J.E. Wootton with his navigator Plt Off J.M. Dymock and Fg Off J. Cheney with his navigator Plt Off J.K. Mycock, are reported missing following an engagement while patrolling over the Bay of Biscay. Four Mosquitoes, piloted by Flt Lt Baillie, Fg Offs Wootton and Cheney and Fg Off Reg Harris from the Canadian No 410 Squadron were airborne at 12.59 on a composite Instep patrol.

During the patrol four Ju 88s were sighted at 7,000 feet. There was patchy cloud at 5,000 feet and a thin continuous layer at 8,000 feet and when spotted, the enemy aircraft broke formation and climbed into the higher cloud. Flt Lt Baillie followed but lost sight of the enemy. On coming down out of the higher cloud he saw one of his section below and soon afterwards saw the other two at sea level. Some little time later he saw all three Mosquitoes well ahead of him but was unable to catch up. He did not want to break radio silence for them to rejoin and he soon lost them from sight. Flt Lt Baillie returned to Predannack, landing at 17.50.

Between 17.10 and 17.25, Fg Off Jimmy Wootton was heard calling for an emergency homing to Predannack and a further transmission from one of the missing aircraft stated they were being chased by Focke Wulf Fw 190s.

These three aircraft, DZ688, ‘V’ [Cheney – in which Jack had made his first Mosquito flight]; DZ685, ‘J’ [Wootton] and DZ753 [Fg Off Reg Harris and Sgt Edward Skeel of 410 Squadron], failed to return and no other details are known of their fate. It would seem that there is little hope of their survival and that the squadron must necessarily face the loss of two very capable crews and four officers for whom we hold a high regard.

It is believed that the enemy aircraft first encountered were Ju 88C–6s of
FlFu Atlantik
(a German naval
Luftflotte
), V/KG40, commanded by Major Alfred Hemm.
Gruppe
HQ was at Kerlin near Lorient and
Staffeln
were dispersed at Mérignac and Cognac airfields, regularly carrying out sweeps over the Bay of Biscay out to longitude 10W and occasionally to 15W. The Ju 88s carried a crew of three and were armed with a battery of three 7.9mm machine guns and three 20mm cannon fixed to fire forward and located under the cockpit. These guns were under the control of the pilot while the navigator and radio operator each had access to 7.9mm machine guns free-mounted to cover attacks on the rear of the aircraft. The Junkers were heavier, slower and less agile than the Mosquito, but the Junkers could out-dive a Mosquito and since the German formations operated with a couple of Ju 88s acting as spotters flying above the main group, the Mosquito crews had to be careful not to get caught by a ‘spotter’ section diving down on them.

The Instep Mosquitoes from Predannack usually took a dogleg course around the Brest peninsula and maintained strict radio silence for as long as possible. It needed only a short transmission for the enemy to gain a fix and alert his own single-seat fighters, who would be waiting to pounce when the Mosquitoes came within range. On this last patrol the outward leg would be made at sea level, flying for economy, but once the enemy had been spotted, precious fuel would be consumed rapidly during combat manoeuvring. After over four and a half hours in the air, low on fuel and apparently unsure of their position after the brush with the Ju 88s, these pilots may have been flying perilously close to the Brest peninsula on that return leg.

The Luftwaffe Command diary records that on the following day, General Adolf Galland reported personally to Hitler that a force of Mosquitoes had been engaged over the Bay of Biscay and four [
sic
] of them had been shot down. Post-war research by the eminent aviation historian Chris Goss established that the Mosquitoes were ‘bounced’ by Fw 190s of 8/JG 2. Oberfeldwebel (Ofw) Friedrich May is credited with shooting down two and Feldwebel (Fw) Alois Schnöll claimed a third. Fw Schnöll was himself killed in action on 22 August 1943, while Ofw May died in action on 20 October 1943.

Some of the others mentioned in Jack Cheney’s Instep patrols also failed to survive the war. Australians Gordon Panitz and his navigator/radar operator Richard Williams were both later awarded the DFC; Panitz rose to the rank of wing commander as OC No 464 Squadron, but both were killed in action on 22 August 1944. Australian Flt Lt John Newell lost his life in an aeroplane accident on 5 March 1945 while serving with No 256 Squadron.

Fg Off Jack Cheney is remembered on the war memorial in Spalding Parish Church and on the Roll of Honour in Spalding Grammar School. Both he and Plt Off Mycock are also recorded on the Runnymede Memorial to the Missing.

When the Second World War broke out, Walter Dring was 23 years old and farming land at Westfield Farm, Pinchbeck West, near Spalding in Lincolnshire. His father, also named Walter, and mother Ethel ran Woad Farm, the main family business near Weston, where the younger Walter was born on 14 July 1916. Walter junior was educated locally at Moulton Grammar School before joining the family business. Although not particularly academically inclined, he was nevertheless a very articulate man and partial to reading poetry. As a young working man, however, Walter lived for farming and sport, excelling at both. He played cricket, in which he was considered a good batsman, and rugby for Spalding. According to his cousin Peter, Walter was energetic and gregarious by nature, but a moderate drinker who did not feel the need to bolster his sometimes enthusiastic socialising by such means. He held firm views about right and wrong and, while he did not force his opinions upon others, he expected his friends to be loyal and did not hesitate to reciprocate this loyalty – backed up if necessary by his strong physique. Walter had supreme confidence in his own abilities yet was perfectly at ease and utterly reliable as a member of any team and he would follow any leader in whom he could believe or respect. Family correspondence shows he was also a modest and thoughtful man. All these attributes stood him in good stead in his work, social and sporting activities and they certainly provided a sound basis for his future flying career.