Base: North Coates
Take off time: No time reocrded in ORB
Op: Special Excercise/Strike
From recent contact with the nephew of S/L Thomson, It has come to light that this crew were on a special training flight when they were lost. It is probable but unconfirmed that S/L Thomson was passenger for training purposes. German reports stated that one of their a/c had shot down a Coastal Command a/c on this day.
The following is taken form the squadron ORB:
Out on a special EXCERCISE STRIKE, in TR-O, P/O BOGGON and crew (Sgt. White, P/O St.Ours, Sgt. Howell) failed to return to base. Sgt. Nankervis and some of 53 Squadron set out on a search of the --"illegible writing"-- at 1707 about 80miles of the LINCS COAST, sighted a JU.88, making another sighting of it at at 1729. No sign of O/59 was discovered, neither of their dinghy. In the evening the German wireless reported that a German a/c had shot down a Coastal Command a/c near the English Coast and that the German pilot had thrown the ditched crew a dinghy...
29/04/1942. The body of P/O Boggon washed ashore near Chicester, Lincs.
All lost: Click links to view aircrew memorial pages
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Also killed was S/Ldr JSJ Thomson – Possibly of HQ 16 Group - attached to 59 sqn - RAF 37872
During WWII, the RAF used three-letter codes to identify their aircraft from a distance. Two large letters were painted before the roundel, which signified the squadron to which the aircraft belonged, and another letter was painted after the roundel which indicated the individual aircraft. Aditionally, there was the individual serial number for each aircraft, which was painted in a much smaller size, usually somewhere at the rear of the aircraft: (more)
Codes used by RAF 59 Squadron:
PJ Sep 1938 - Sep 1939
TR Sep 1939 - Oct 1942
1 Aug 1943 - Jul 1944
WE Jul 1944 - Oct 1945
BY Oct 1945 - Jun 1946, Dec 1947 - Oct 1950