This aircraft, captained by Squadron Leader Drummond Wilson, was one of 18 Stirling bombers which were part of a raid on the German city of Essen on the night of the 10th/11th April 1942.
Over the city they were 'coned' by searchlights and badly damaged by anti-aircraft fire.
Drummond, and his co-pilot 19yr old Sgt David Southey, coaxed the stricken bomber back to RAF Alconbury. However with wheels down on final approach they were ordered to go 'around' as there was an aircraft on the runway without permission.
As they flew over Godmanchester a damaged oil pipe broke, both starboard engines cut out and the plane came down in an area close to the A14/Cow Lane.
Drummond and the Mid Upper Gunner, Sgt Edgar Gould, were killed. Of the six that survived, three would not live to see the end of the war. The Navigator, Flying Officer Clifford Reeve, went back into the burning aircraft to rescue two crew members despite being severely injured himself.
For his actions that day he was awarded a military MBE which he received from the King in December 1942 at Buckingham Palace.
This site is dedicated to the crew of Stirling N3703, their fellow XV Squadron colleagues and the men of Bomber Command. My book 'Stirling to Essen' tells their remarkable tale.
My book 'Stirling to Essen' was officially launched at the Flying Legends Show at IWM Duxford in July 2017, Fighting High Publishing had their usual tent and as a good ex Northerner would say I felt well 'chuffed' to be there signing copies. In reality it had actually been launched a week earlier at my 2017 Godmanchester Bomber Command Veterans Day, a close run thing as they arrived on a pallet at 8am with the event opening at 10am.
How did the book come into existence? Well my talk 'The Godmanchester Stirling' had been well received by a number of local history societies and its 'fame' spread by word of mouth. Soon I was being booked by what seemed every local history society for miles. Eventually I was booked by the Huntingdon Local History Society, they loved the story and approached me to see if there was enough to turn it into a book ? Well of course there were reams of photos and stories that I could not cram into the one hour talk, so the answer was simple... Yes! I was then asked to submit a Goodliff Award application, which I was subsequently granted, an amazing £1,000, adding money I had raised (another £1,000) and we were under way. Finding a publisher was not difficult, I was already working with Fighting High and knew Steve Darlow well. My work could not have been in better or more professional hands.
ABOVE: The Goodliff Awards presentation evening and the renowned TV Historian Doctor Simon Thurley presenting the £1000 grant towards the book.
I had a veritable mountain of information, stories and a wealth of unique and amazing photographs. The problem now lay in intertwining them and sifting them into a chronological order. This was the most difficult job, knitting them together into a coherent story. This would take 18 months of writing, jigging, re-jigging, double checking and correcting before I was in a position to submit the initial draft. Some time later Steve came around to do a check on 'errors' that were in the manuscript. In essence, although there seemed a lot, I was told it was quite normal and many of the queries related to what does this mean, what does that stand for etc. Off it went again for a final check and proofread.
ABOVE: 'Stirling to Essen' lands at the Comrades Club, Godmanchester with two hours to spare! Steve from Fighting High Publishing gets to grips with the pallet wrap and I cast my eye over 6 years work.
At that point one event brought two chapters to a stop, the discovery of the family of Sergeant Noel 'Johnny' Spalding in Ohio, USA. I had been frustrated in not knowing more about 'Johnny', and felt that his story couldn't just stop at his death. What became of his his widow and son?, well thanks to Facebook and couple of very skilled and resolute 'diggers' they were found and a torrent of information and photos streamed across the Atlantic. Two chapters had to be rapidly rewritten to include 'Johnny's' story.
ABOVE: The 'Official' launch at IWM Duxford at the Flying Legends weekend in July 2017. In a world dominated by Lancasters it was well received by those with a wider interest. And there were also a good few Short Stirling fanatics there.
I cannot express enough my gratitude to the families of all the airmen mentioned in the book. Every one of them has been incredibly supportive, willingly sharing memories, documents and photographs, all of which helped make the book a more personal account of 'their war'. I made a promise to myself that I would do all I could to spread their story as far as I could, so I organised numerous signing events where the money raised was transferred to The Godmanchester Stirling Fund, and then donated onto to support local and national charities and causes. In 2017 the Fund was able to donate over £3,000, in 2018 this rose to over £4,000 , mostly from money raised from the book. In February 2018 the book had its first reprint, having sold out just before Christmas. I hope to be able to raise another £3,000 in 2019, but the fund will shrink as stocks dwindle. Although there is the possibility of a paperback edition which would open the story up to a whole new audience. Meanwhile another book is possibly on the horizon, based on stories from Farm Hall in Godmanchester, an SIS Secret Establishment during WW2, I have discovered some amazing stories of both those who ran it and those who passed through its doors.
ABOVE: A hugely treasured photo of myself at the 2017 Godmanchester Bomber Command Veterans Day and the wonderful 'Johnny' Johnson (617 Squadron Dambusters) holding a copy.
I must also give praise to all those who helped with the research, some of whom I've never met, their expertise helped me no end in piecing together the story and ensuring that it was accurate and their enthusiasm to help was heartwarming. All kinds of museums, groups and historical societies etc contributed to a greater or lesser extent. Too many to mention here, but they are all acknowledged in the book, and rightly so. One gentleman I must thank is Steve Bengree, he's a wizard with computers and led this 'old dog' by the nose through putting together this website. So thanks Steve, you're a gem and I absolutely couldn't have done this without you.
Finally I must thank my wife, Michele, who has been incredibly supportive throughout this long process, thankfully Sunday night TV is not for me and she loved the programmes. I lost count of the number of times I'd run down the stairs excited about yet another amazing story or coincidence and exclaim 'You'll never guess what I've discovered now' and she would hit the pause or mute button. She's been a rock, and I'm very grateful for her support.