RAF 624 (Special Duties ) Squadron

 

Halifax JN896 according to the Official Record Books (540’s) for 624SD Squadron was on the strength of this squadron until on the night of August 14^th/15^th 1944, when it was returning from a mission Drop Zone Quincaille with the crew (F/O Driscoll, FO O’Neale, F/Sgt Lambert, W/O Proctor, Sgt Hurst, Sgt Soulsby, W/O Laing, F/O Luxon, F/Sgt Hulmes) all contact was lost. A report that a 4 engined aircraft was seen to explode and crash into the sea from a village of San Agaro in Spain matched with the time, and although a search was made, nothing was found.

 

 It now appears also that, in the Official Record Books (540’s) for 148 Squadron that the same aircraft (Halifax JN896) crashed, with no further news, following a mission to Warsaw. This was also on the 14^th August 1944 and the crew named are, P/O Casey, F/Sgt. Bedford, F/sgt. Samways, Sgt. Darling, Sgt. Roots, Sgt. Harthog, Sgt. Law.

 

 Now, one has to ask the question, which one is right, or, how can an aircraft crash, without trace, twice, within a 24-hour period.

 

As there is an approximate location for the 624 Squadron aircraft, and also that my uncle was Flight Engineer, I would dearly love to be able to try to locate the aircraft in the Mediterranean, and attempt to find some form of identifying which aircraft this was. Surely only one can be correct, and written records appear not to be able to answer this.

 

 As historian and webmaster for www.624squadron.org I feel that any help & advice in researching this mystery would be very much appreciated.

Mystery of Halifax JN896

History