James Denholm

Abt 1921 - 1943  (21 years)

• Name	James Denholm
  Born	Abt 11 Nov 1921	Bo'Ness, West Lothian, Scotland
  Gender	Male
  _UID	635A068BBBF34CBDA733B0845EBAEFB9D339
  Died	20 Jun 1943	Calvados, France
  Buried	Bretteville-Sur-Laize Canadian War Cemetery, Clavados France
  Person ID	I264	My Big Tree
  Last Modified	8 Apr 2021

  
  

  Father	Robert Kerr Denholm,   b. 7 Jan 1890, Dechmont Road, Livingston, West Lothian, Scotland ,   d. 10 Dec 1959, Bangour Hospital, Broxburn, West Lothian, Scotland  (Age 69 years)
  Mother	Elizabeth Watt Stewart,   b. 13 Oct 1894, Pitlessie, Cults, Fife, Scotland ,   d. 18 Dec 1984, Bangour Hospital, Broxburn, West Lothian, Scotland  (Age 90 years)
  Married	2 Jul 1920	The Manse, Bo'ness, West Lothian, Scotland   [1]
  Family ID	F31	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Headstones

  James Denholm 20 Jun 1943

  
  

• Notes

  After graduating from Herriott Watt Uni as a chemist? James joined the RAF service number 157440 from 83 Deanfield Rd Bo'ness. James was shot down over France. James is buried in Caen Canadian Cemetery. Commemorated on thhe CWGC site. gravw ref XX. B. 10 Comments: I am researching information about the bombing raid on Le Creusot on Jun 19/20 1943. My father's friend James Denholm was killed when his Halifax II JD-107 EQ-Y was hit by light flak near Caen. DENHOLM, James Pilot Offr (Nav) 157440 RAFVR 20 June 1943 France - Bretteville-Sur-Laize Canadian War Cem. If anybody has information about No 408 Sqn's role in this raid in general and about EQ-Y and P/O Denholm in particular I would be pleased to receive it. Many thanks in anticipation. Reply: Here is what happened according to two survivors. Date: June 19/20,1943 Aircraft: Halifax II Serial No: JD-107 Code: EQ-Y Target: Le Creusot Pilot: P/O R. Symes 141129 pow Flt/engineer: P/O D. Horner C-17468 + Navigator: P/O J. Denholm 157440 + Bomb Aimer: F/Lt M. Samuels J-17087 + Wireless Operator: P/O P. Quance A-411378 + Mid upper gunner: Sgt H. Brown R-120968 pow Rear gunner: F/O R. Ball J-12326 pow Time off: 21:59 Time down: missing Bomb load: 1 x 2,000 lb, 1 x 1,000 lb and 8 x 500 lb high explosives. Shot down by a flak gun and crashed near Caen. NAME. Symes R.A HOW MANY OPS. 20 DUTY. Pilot There was a full moon and very clear. Everything went according to plan. I flew out at 10,000 feet and bombed at 4,000 feet. I saw 2 JU-88 night fighters, but they apparently did not see me. Owing to the fact that I had no mid upper turret and that the operation was originally intended to be a low level one, I decided to fly back from the target low. The visibility was very good. I reached a turning point on course, here I saw 2 other Halifaxes one on either side about the same height as myself. Everything was quiet and I avoided all villages, towns, etc until I approached the French coast where I turned to starboard to avoid coastal flak and flew over Caen. 4 guns, 20 mm turret opened up all around, especially on the beams. The aircraft was hit and the port outer caught fire, but since it was still working I did not feather it. A searchlight picked me up dead ahead. The aircraft started to spin, having only one wing the aircraft crashed nose first and broke up on its back. I remember nothing about the crash. The rear gunner says the wing came off. I regained consciousness sometime later. The rear gunner and some German personal extracted me from under an engine. Does not think he hit the ground and tore the wing off. Fairly sure that the wing was shot off. Did not strictly follow the return flight plan. NAME. Ball R. J HOW MANY OPS. 14 DUTY. Rear gunner Took off from Leeming, Yorks on evening of June 19,1943. Headed south to target of Le Cruesot, France, bombed approximately midnight, single jet of light flak in target area, clear sky, full moon. On turning from target to return to base, pilot considered it best to avoid night fighter attack by descending to low level, 2 JU-88's having been spotted flying parallel course just after leaving the target. Passed over Caen at its western extremity , about 3 miles north we passed over a thin strip of trees and dead over a flak battery of which we were unaware of until it opened fire. The guns in the pits with soil and grain growing around and over them as was ascertained later when the German soldiers brought us to their O.Cs billet following the crash. On opening barrage of flak, the rear turret opened up to retaliate, aircraft penetrated through fuselage by flak, rear turrets guns damaged and reflector sight by a passing shell from starboard to port. Intercom still working, last message from pilot "well be out of this in a minute" port outer engine then burst into flames followed immediately by an explosion. The port outer engine and wing tip dropping away from the aircraft, with the aircraft dipping sharply to port, diving to the deck, hitting skidding on its nose and then giving a quick flip over. The rear turret becoming disengaged during the flip and landing some 50 feet away from the tail of the aircraft. On leaving the turret I crawled to the ****pit, found the pilot held in an inverted position by his harness in the ****pit. I tripped the harness and made him as comfortable as possible on the ground, bound a deep gash on his temple with a handkerchief and then endeavoured to locate the rest of the crew. The mangled remains of P/O Quance, the wireless operator, the only other member seen before my removal by German soldiers to the German billet, approximately 10-15 minutes after the crash. No. 408 "Goose" Squadron was a RCAF Squadron, based in Britain and under RAF operational command. The squadron operated as part of Bomber Command's main force from 24 June 1941 until the end of the war. From January 1943 it was part of No.6 (RCAF) Group. The squadron began operations with the Handley Page Hampden, before switching to the Merlin powered Halifax in September 1942. After just over a year these were replaced by Lancaster IIs in October 1943, and then by the Hercules powered Halifax III and VII. At the end of the war in Europe the squadron was converting to the Canadian built Lancaster B.Mk X, and in June 1945 it flew its Lancasters back to Canada in preparation for the planned invasion of Japan. The squadron disbanded after the Japanese surrender removed the need for Tiger Force, the planned contribution to the bombing campaign. DENHOLM, JAMES Rank: Pilot Officer Service No: 157440 Date of Death: 20/06/1943 Age: 21 Regiment/Service: Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve 408 (R.C.A.F.) Sqdn. Grave Reference XX. B. 10. Cemetery BRETTEVILLE-SUR-LAIZE CANADIAN WAR CEMETERY Additional Information: Son of Robert Kerr Denholm and Elizabeth Watt Denholm, of Bo'ness, West Lothian, Scotland.

  
  

• Sources

  [S47] GRO Edinburgh (Reliability: 3). Marriage Cert