CREW MEMBER PROFILE |
||||||
Surname: |
DURSTON |
First Name/s: |
Kenneth George "Ken" |
 |
||
|
||||||
Service No/s: |
1882568 |
Service: |
RAFVR |
Branch: |
Air Gunner |
|
|
||||||
Awards: |
1939-1945 Star, France & Germany Star, 1939-1945 War Medal |
|||||
SERVICE RECORDS |
|||
Date |
Event |
Aircraft Flown |
|
|---|---|---|---|
|
14 Dec 1943 |
Enlisted at No. 2 Recruit Centre (2 RC), Cardington, Bedfordshire, as Aircraftman Second Class (AC2), recommended for training as Wireless Operator/Air Gunner, and mustering as Air Crew Hand (Wireless Operator/Air Gunner). |
||
|
27 Dec 1943 |
No. 3 Air Crew Reception Centre (3 ACRC), Regent’s Park, London. |
||
|
15 Jan 1944 |
No. 18 Initial Training Wing (18 ITW), Bridgnorth, Shropshire. |
||
|
02 Feb 1944 |
Remustered as under training Wireless Operator (Air). |
||
|
11 Mar 1944 |
Attached to No. 17 Initial Training Wing (17 ITW), Belvedere House, Scarborough, Yorks. |
||
|
23 Mar 1944 |
Remustered as under training Air Gunner. |
||
|
28 Mar 1944 |
Returned to No. 18 Initial Training Wing (18 ITW), now located at the Southcliffe Hotel, 6-10 Marine Drive, Bridlington, Yorkshire. |
||
|
10 Jun 1944 |
No. 12 Air Gunnery School, 26 Course, Bishops Court, Downpatrick, County Down, Northern Ireland. |
Anson |
|
|
05 Aug 1944 |
Awarded Air Gunner’s (AG) brevet, promoted to Sergeant, and remustered as Air Gunner. |
||
|
22 Aug 1944 |
No.85 Operational Training Unit (OTU), Husbands Bosworth; joins P F Sattler RAAF crew. |
Wellington |
|
|
25 Nov 1944 |
No. 71 Base, Lindholme, administrative HQ for No. 7 Group heavy bomber conversion. |
||
|
26 Nov 1944 |
No. 1667 Heavy Convesion Unit (HCU), Sandtoft, Lincolnshire. |
Lancaster |
|
|
24 Feb 1945 |
No. 576 Squadron (Sqn), ‘A’ Flight (Flt), Fiskerton, Lincolnshire |
Lancaster |
|
|
16 Mar 1945 |
Nuremburg; lost in ME317 UL-C2, aged 21 |
Lancaster |
|
576 Squadron FLYING RECORDS |
|||||||
Date |
Aircraft |
Code |
Flight Details |
T/O |
Land |
Flt Time |
Crew |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
11 Mar 1945 |
LM227 |
UL-I2 |
ESSEN |
1145 |
1705 |
5h20 |
P1 Flt Sgt P.F. Sattler RAAF |
NOTES: |
Built-up area - Flown in support of advancing Allied ground forces RUHR Load: All aircraft: 1x 4000lb ‘Cookie’, 16x 500lb bombs |
||||||
|
12 Mar 1945 |
RA562 |
UL-B2 |
DORTMUND |
1305 |
1840 |
5h35 |
P1 Flt Sgt P.F. Sattler RAAF |
NOTES: |
Built-Up Area - Flown in support of advancing Allied ground forces. RUHR Load: All aircraft: 1x 4000lb ‘Cookie’ and 16x 500lb bombs. FIDO (fog dispersion) in use at Fiskerton. |
||||||
|
15 Mar 1945 |
ME317 |
UL-C2 |
MISBURG |
1720 |
0105 |
7h45 |
P1 Flt Sgt P.F. Sattler RAAF |
NOTES: |
Deurag oil refinery Load: All aircraft: 1x 4000lb ‘Cookie’ and 1320x 4lb incendiaries. |
||||||
|
16 Mar 1945 |
ME317 |
UL-C2 |
NUREMBURG |
1720 |
FTR |
uk |
P1 Flt Sgt P.F. Sattler RAAF |
NOTES: |
Built-up area Load: All aircraft: 1x 4000lb ‘Cookie’ and 1470x 4lb incendiaries. Failed to return. Flt Sgt P F Sattler RAAF PoW Sgt W E A Jeffery killed Fg Off N Whiteley PoW Sgt P F Garner PoW Sgt W Walker killed Sgt K G Durston killed Sgt D F Wood killed Nuremburg; lost in ME317 UL-C2, aged 20 Shot down probably by a Bf-110 flown by Maj Herbert Lutje of Stab NJG-6 at 2133 and 15,000 ft, some 30 km SSW Nuremburg, or by a Ju-88 flown by Oblt Erich Jung of 5/NJG2 (one of eight ‘Anschluss’ that night) in the Ansbach area at 15,000 ft, tbc. 4 crew killed, 3 taken PoW. The aircraft was attacked from below and the incendiaries caught fire. Losing control, the skipper ordered the crew to abandon the Lancaster. He reported that Jeffery had baled out, but he was not seen again. His precise fate not known but is described as ‘killed in action’ on 17 Mar 45. The captured Nav (Garner) was shown Jeffery’s ID card by the Germans, but never saw him. He is commemorated at Runnymede, Panel 271. |
||||||
PERSONAL INFORMATION |
|
Personal Records Restricted - not available to the public |
PHOTOS & DOCUMENTS |
|
Personal Documents Restricted - not available to the public |
