The Pilots of 41 Squadron RAF, 1939-1945

Surnames Commencing with B


Name BABBAGE, Cyril Frederick 'Frank'
Number 89298
Rank Pilot Officer
Nationality British
Born Ludlow, Shropshire, 25 June 1917
Arrived 12 June 1941
Departed ca. early 1942
Decorations DFM (1940)
Notes Commissioned November 1940; retired as Wing Commander June 1964; died 1977

Name BACHE, Leslie Longmore
Number 72018
Rank Flight Lieutenant
Nationality British
Born Bootle, Cumberland, unknown date 1913
Arrived 25 August 1941
Departed 13 October 1941
Notes FTR from sweep over France (KIA), 13 October 1941, aged 28; son of Rev. Joseph W. R. Bache & Ada B. Bache; buried in Boulogne Eastern Cemetery, Pas de Calais, France, Plot 13,  Row C, Grave 12

Name BAKER, Aubrey Cyril
Number 810145 / 64892
Rank Sergeant Pilot / Pilot Officer
Nationality British
Born Birmingham, 28 April 1919
Arrived 30 September 1940
Departed 13 May 1941 (Last mentioned on this date)
Decorations DFC (1942)
Notes Joined RAF as ground crew, 1935, but accepted for pilot training, 1939, commissioned April 1941; released from RAF 1946; died 1978

Name BAKER, Henry Collingham 'Butch'
Number 41146
Rank Pilot Officer
Nationality British
Born Worksop, Notts., 19 May 1920
Arrived late August 1940
Departed October 1940
Notes Released from RAF as Squadron Leader, January 1946

Name BALASSE, Maurice Arthur Leon 'Momo'
Number 135893
Rank Pilot Officer, Flying Officer, Flight Lieutenant
Nationality Belgian
Born R'jev, Russia, 27 June 1914
Term 1 1-10 June 1943
Term 2 6 November 1943-23 January 1945 (attached to 611 Squadron, 6-23 November 1943)
Notes SD and KIA during an armed reconnaissance to Münster, Germany, 23 January 1945; originally buried in Handorf, Germany, then moved to Reichswald Forest Cemetery, Germany, & finally to Evere Cemetery, Belgium

Name BAMBERGER, Cyril Stanley 'Bam'
Number 810024
Rank Sergeant Pilot
Nationality British
Born Hyde, Cheshire, 4 May 1919
Arrived 17 September 1940
Departed 19 October 1940
Decorations DFC (1943), AE (1944), Bar to DFC (1944)
Notes Commissioned October 1942; released from RAF 1946, but recalled during Korean crisis and finally retired January 1959, retaining Squadron Leader; died 3 February 2008

Name BANACH, Wladislaw
Number P.1673
Rank Pilot Officer
Nationality Polish
Born Tarnowa, Poland, 15 June 1919
Arrived 27 October 1942
Departed 9 December 1942
Decorations Polish KW [Krzyz Walecznych / Cross of Valour] (1944)
Notes Commissioned December 1941; ended war as Flight Lieutenant

Name BARTON, Robert Alexander 'Butch'
Number 37664
Rank Pilot Officer, Flying Officer
Nationality Canadian
Born Kamloops, BC, Canada, 7 June 1916
Arrived 11 October 1936
Departed 15 May 1940
Decorations DFC (1940), Bar to DFC (1941), OBE (1945)
Notes Retired February 1959 as Wing Commander; died 2 September 2010

Name BEARD, Anthony William
Number 1331949
Rank Sergeant Pilot
Nationality British
Born Wanstead, East London, 4 December 1922
Arrived 26 August 1942 (first mentioned on this date)
Departed 24 December 1942 (last mentioned on this date)
Notes 41 Squadron was Beard's first operational unit, but nothing else known about him after departure from the Squadron, except that he died in Penrith, Cumbria, in September 2003

Name BEARDSLEY, Robert Arthur 'Bob'
Number 741411 / 100607
Rank Sergeant Pilot / Pilot Officer
Nationality British
Born Old Charlton, London, 9 January 1920
Arrived 17 September 1940
Departed 20 November 1941
Decorations DFC (1941)
Notes Commissioned June 1941; retired August 1970; died October 2003; see also Spitfire EB-B; B for Beardsley

Name BEAUMONT, Ronald
Number 102127
Rank Pilot Officer
Nationality British
Born Mytholmroyd, Yorkshire, 12 May 1921
Arrived 4 December 1941
Departed 18 December 1941
Notes FTR/MIA in Hurr. IIc, BD774, on lone night-time straffing raid, whilst serving with 73 Squadron, 26 May 1942, aged 21; son of Fred and Bedelia Beaumont of Mytholmroyd, Yorkshire; buried in Grave 8.D.15. of Benghazi War Cemetery, Libya

Name BEDNARZ, Jozef
Number 782356
Rank Sergeant Pilot
Nationality Polish
Born Rymacze, Wolyń Province, Poland, 13 June 1920
Arrived 17 December 1942
Departed 1 February 1943
Notes KIFA during a photo reconnaissance sortie in Spitfire Vb, X4279, on a beach west of Pwllheli, Wales, 1 February 1943; buried in Grave 620 of Portmadoc Public Cemetery, Caernarvonshire, Wales

Name BENHAM, Douglas Ian 'Benny' & 'Douggie'
Number 104443
Rank Squadron Leader
Nationality British
Born Wimbledon, 30 December 1917
Arrived 28 August 1944
Departed 24 March 1945
Decorations DFC (1943), AFC (1944), Bar to DFC (1945), OBE (1957)
Notes Commissioned, August 1941; CO, 28 August 1944-8 April 1945; retired December 1957, retaining Wing Commander; died Wales, 28 October 2009

Name BENJAMIN, Sydney Hyman
Number 1272288
Rank Sergeant Pilot
Nationality British
Born London, 10 July 1922
Arrived 5 August 1942 (first mentioned on this date)
Departed 27 December 1942
Notes KIA whilst with 1435 Squadron (based on Malta) and providing air support for the invasion of Sicily, 12 July 1943, aged 20; son of Samuel and Milly Benjamin of Kingsway, Hove, Sussex; buried in Grave II. A. 4. of Syracuse War Cemetery, Sicily, Italy

Name BENNIONS, George Herman 'Ben'
Number 563057 / 43354
Rank Sergeant Pilot / Pilot Officer
Nationality British
Born Burslem, Staffordshire, 13 March 1913
Arrived 16 February 1936
Departed 1 October 1940
Decorations DFC (1940)
Notes Cannon shell exploded in cockpit, 1 October 1940, blinding him in one eye and wounding his right arm and leg; baled out and hospitalised; underwent plastic surgery at Queen Victoria Hospital, East Grinstead, by facial reconstruction pioneer Dr. Archie McIndoe; became one of the founding members of McIndoe's "Guinea Pigs"; died 30 January 2004; see also On Being Shot Down, Combat Report for 17 September 1940 and George Bennions: 15 March 1913 - 30 January 2004; An Obituary

Name BEURLING, George Frederick 'Buzz' & 'Screwball'
Number 1267053
Rank Sergeant Pilot
Nationality Canadian
Born Montreal, Quebec, Canada, 6 December 1921
Arrived 18 April 1942
Departed 21 May 1942 (last mentioned in ORB on this date)
Decorations DFM (1942), Bar to DFM (1942), DFC (1942), DSO (1942)
Notes Commissioned in RAF July 1942; transferred to RCAF, September 1943; became Canada's leading World War II ace; 'retired' by RCAF 1943; recruited by Israel after WWII; KIFA in Rome, 20 May 1948

Name BIGGS, Stanley John
Number 1263193
Rank Flight Sergeant
Nationality British
Born Paddington, London, 14 April 1920
Arrived 12 February 1943
Departed 7 June 1943
Notes Died 7 January 1944, aged 23; son of Joseph J. and Maud Biggs of Kenton, Harrow, Middlesex; buried in the Men's Protestant Section, Plot F, Collective Grave 48 of Malta Capuccini Naval Cemetery

Name BIRBECK, Clive Robert 'Joe'
Number 108990
Rank Flying Officer, Flight Lieutenant
Nationality British
Born Ceylon, 2 September 1922
Arrived 8 February 1943
Departed 23 July 1944
Notes Hit by flak in a 127 Squadron Spitfire XVI, baled out & captured, Holland, 17 January 1945

Name BLATCHFORD, Howard Peter 'Cowboy'
Number 37715
Rank Pilot Officer, Flying Officer
Nationality Canadian
Born Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, 25 February 1912
Arrived 10 January 1937 (att. 234 Squadron, Leconfield, 1-4 November 1939)
Departed 20 April 1940
Decorations DFC (1940)
Notes Shared 41 Squadron's first World War II victory, a He111, with Sgts. E. A. Shipman & A. Harris on 17 October 1939; KIA 3 May 1943, aged 31; son of Kenneth A. and Grace L. Blatchford, of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada; remembered on Panel 118 of the Runnymede Memorial

Name BODKIN, William Fred
Number R.71531
Rank Sergeant Pilot
Nationality Canadian
Born Watford, Ontario, Canada, 1 March 1918
Arrived 11 July 1941
Departed 28 August 1941
Notes KIA 28 August 1941, aged 23; son of Claude & Wilsena Bodkin, & husband of Mary A. Bodkin of Welland, Ont.; remembered on Panel 60 of the Runnymede Memorial

Name BØDTKER, Carl Sejersted
Number 1619
Rank 2nd Lieutenant / Lieutenant
Nationality Norwegian
Born Oslo, Norway, 11 June 1923
Arrived 7 March 1945
Departed 9 May 1945
Notes Achieved the final WWII aerial victory for a Norwegian pilot, 1 May 1945; died 28 May 1987; see also 41 Squadron and the End of the War in Europe

Name BORET, Robert John
Number 42554
Rank Pilot Officer
Nationality British
Born London, 8 November 1919
Arrived 2 March 1940
Departed 19 October 1940
Notes Died 16 November 1940 (216 Sqdn.), aged 20, when aircraft ran out of fuel at sea between HMS Argus and Malta; son of Air Cdr. John A. Boret, CBE, MC, AFC, who commanded 41 Squadron from May 1933-March 1937; remembered on Panel 7 of the Runnymede Memorial (see also James R. Walker, who died in the same incident)

Name BOURBONNAIS, Joseph Joffre Gaetan
Number R/56166
Rank Sergeant Pilot
Nationality Canadian
Born 1 February 1916
Arrived 5 May 1941 (detached to 4 Delivery Flight, Grangemouth, June-ca. September 1941)
Departed 11 October 1941
Notes Repatriated to Canada, October 1941, and released July 1942

Name BOYD, Robert James 'Bobby'
Number 126765
Rank Pilot Officer, Flying Officer
Nationality British
Born Walsall, Staffordshire, 29 September 1918
Arrived ca. 2 November 1942
Departed 6 September 1943
Notes KIA 6 September 1943, aged 24, when hit by AA while escorting USAAF bombers to Rouen; baled out but parachute failed to open; son of Walter & Dora Boyd of Wolverhampton; buried in Grandcourt War Cemetery, Seine-Maritime, France, Grave A, 2.

Name BOYLE, John Greer 'Beryl'
Number 40204
Rank Flying Officer
Nationality Canadian
Born Casselman, Ontario, Canada, 27 March 1914
Arrived 5 May 1940
Departed 28 September 1940
Notes KIA 28 September 1940, aged 26; son of Dr. Joseph P. Boyle & Catherine Greer Boyle, of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada; buried in Saints Peter & Paul New Churchyard, Lynsted, Kent, Row F, Grave 1

Name BRADSHAW, John Tyron 'Jack'
Number 605510
Rank Flight Sergeant
Nationality American (in RAF)
Born Morristown New Jersey, USA, 5 November 1921
Arrived 18 August 1943
Departed 31 October 1944
Notes Transferred to USAAC, 1 November 1944; flew for Pan American Grace Airways (PANAGRA) after war; retired 1982

Name BREW, William Aubrey 'Bill'
Number 402220
Rank Sergeant Pilot
Nationality Australian
Born Newcastle NSW, Australia, 25 July 1916
Arrived 16 June 1941
Departed 27 August 1941
Notes SD over St. Omer, France, 27 August 1941, and captured; died 6 December 2004; see also From Pilot to POW in One Short Sweep & Spitfire Va, EB-Q, R7304, 1939-1941

Name BRIGGS, Michael Featherstone
Number 86346
Rank Pilot Officer
Nationality British
Born Hendon, Middlesex, date unknown 1920
Arrived 4 November 1940
Departed 2 April 1941
Notes KIFA 2 April 1941, aged 20; son of Grp. Capt. E. F. Briggs, ret., & Mrs. Briggs of Cookham, Berks.; buried in Cookham Cemetery, Berks., Section F., Row, F., Grave 6

Name BROWN, Maurice Peter
Number 40796
Rank Pilot Officer
Nationality British
Born London, 17 June 1919
Arrived 29 September 1940
Departed 28 June 1941
Decorations AFC (1946)
Notes Subsequently flying instructor at OTU, FTS and AFU; released from RAF, Nov. 1945, retaining Squadron Leader; author of 'Honour Restored' (Spellmount, 2004); died 21 January 2011.

Name BROWN, Norman McHardy
Number 84958
Rank Pilot Officer
Nationality British
Born Edinburgh, Scotland, 1919
Arrived 12 October 1940
Departed 6 April 1941
Notes Commission terminated on completion of service, 12 April 1941

Name BROWN, Walter Wilson
Number 1345121
Rank Sergeant Pilot
Nationality British
Born Tranent, Scotland, 28 September 1921
Arrived 28 December 1942
Departed ca. 6 January 1943 (last mentioned on this date)
Notes Commissioned May 1944

Name BUCHANAN, George Andrew Forsyth
Number 60080
Rank Pilot Officer
Nationality Rhodesian
Born Dundee, Natal, South Africa, 28 November 1912
Arrived 27 August 1941
Departed After October 1941
Decorations DFC (1942)
Notes Relinquished commission, May 1946, retaining Flight Lieutenant

Name BUCKLEY, John Bowyer
Number J.6013
Rank Pilot Officer
Nationality Canadian
Born Harlow, Essex, 19 May 1922
Term 1 18 November-date? 1941 (to 41 Sqdn. from HQ, 11 Group, 18 Nov., and to 52 OTU, Aston Down, date?)
Term 2 4-18 December 1941 (to 41 Sqdn. from 52 OTU, Aston Down, 4 Dec., and from 41 Sqdn. to RAF Tangmere, pending overseas disposal, 18 Dec.)
Notes SD/KIA whilst serving with 260 Sqdn., in Hudson FK386 whilst in transit from Pontreath to Gibraltar, 3 June 1943, aged 21; son of Sidney E. and Joan I. Buckley of Woodcroft, Northamptonshire; remembered on Panel 172 of the Runnymede Memorial, Surrey

Name BULL, Alan Lindsay
Number 400219
Rank Sergeant Pilot
Nationality Australian
Born Bairnsdale, Victoria, Australia, 25 February 1918
Arrived 16 June 1941
Departed 12 August 1941
Notes SD over Hazebrouck, France, 12 August 1941, and captured; escaped during forced march in April 1945 with WO Bill Brew and walked to Allied lines; died 1997

Name BURNE, Thomas Roper
Number 33457
Rank Flight Lieutenant
Nationality British
Born Singapore, 19 February 1920
Arrived 16 December 1943
Departed 24 February 1945
Decorations AFC (1942), MiD (1942), DSO (1945)
Notes Lost right leg below knee in Sumatra as a result of Japanese bombing of an airfield, 1942; hit by flak & severely WIA (right arm, right leg & chest) during attack on flak train, 24 February 1945; appointed ADC to the Queen, 18 September 1968; retired January 1970, died 1981

Name BUSH, Charles Roy
Number 42691
Rank Flying Officer
Nationality New Zealander
Born Wellington, New Zealand, 7 February 1918
Arrived 15 August 1941
Departed 23 October 1941
Decorations DFC (1941)
Notes KIFA in Ruahines, during photographic reconnaissance in Gisborne area of NZ, 30 November 1948

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