206900 Sgt. Claude Francis Curtis Royal Air Force 57 Sqd. (d.1st April 1942) Claude was my mother's brother. His No. was 1375137. His Wellington III, serial no. X3410, took off at 21.20 on the 1st April 1942 on a raid on the railway sidings at Hanau. The aircraft crashed south of Hanau at a place called Frettenheimer. I believe that his aircraft was the only one that went missing on that night. I have been in touch with the mayor of Frettenheimer and he remembers the aircraft crashing (apparentley the only one during the war) and he offered to show me the crash site. I will get there sometime.
The crew were as follows:-
- PILOT : Harvie, Guy de Laval, Squadron Leader, (36112) (killed)
- CREW : Sergeant C F Curtis (killed),
- Sergeant S L Green RAAF (killed),
- Sergeant D Henderson (killed),
- Sergeant R Marshall RAAF (killed),
- FlightLieutenant Thomas Henry Tozer (rear gunner) (76019) (killed)
- DETAILS : All members of the crew are buried Rheinberg War Cemetery.
- S/LHarvie was a New Zealander, serving in the RAF, from Cambridge, Auckland,where his father was the Revd F G Harvie MA. From his rank, F/L Tozer was probably the squadron gunner leader.
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