Richard Walter George West . Royal Navy from Gosport
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Cpl Robert William "Tanky" West . British Army 2nd Btn. Fife and Forfar Yeomanry from Bow, London Robert West served with the 2nd Battalion Fife and Forfar Yeomanry in WW2
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RW West . British Army RW West served with the British Army. I have his unissued dogtags, made in preparation for deployment to the Far East and would love to get them home to his family. I am happy to cover all costs. If you are a family member or can put me in touch with them please get in touch. Update: Unfortunately The Wartime Memories Project has lost touch with Dan, his website, facebook page and email have all ceased to function. But if you can add any details about the person listed, please use the add to record link below.
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T West . British Army T West served with the British Army. I have his unissued dogtags, made in preparation for deployment to the Far East and would love to get them home to his family. I am happy to cover all costs. If you are a family member or can put me in touch with them please get in touch. Update: Unfortunately The Wartime Memories Project has lost touch with Dan, his website, facebook page and email have all ceased to function. But if you can add any details about the person listed, please use the add to record link below.
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Sgt. Thomas Ian Arthur West . Royal Air Force No. 14 Operational Training Unit from Cashelgarron (d.9th Dec 1941) Sergeant (Pilot) Thomas West was the son of Arthur and Amy Elizabeth West, of Cashelgarron.
He was 23 when he died and is buried in Drumcliffe (St. Columa) Church of Ireland Churchyard, Co. Sligo, Ireland.
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L/Bmbdr. Thomas West . British Army 253rd Bty. 81st HAA Regiment Royal Artillery from Accrington (d.28th Oct 1943) Thomas West was the son of my great-grandmother Clara and her first husband
William, who was declared missing presumed dead on the 20th of November 1917 during the first world war.
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Sgt Charles F West. . RAFVR 1664 HCU
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Sgt Edward George Westall. . Royal Air Force 78 Sqd.
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W/O. Mervin Charles Westbrook . Royal Air Force 196 squadron from Honister, Fortunes Way, Bedhampton, Havant, Hants My father Mervin C. Westbrook served on Wellies & Stirlings of 196 Squadron. He talked about many, many supply trips over France and Holland; during one the flak so affected his aircraft that it lurched alarmingly just as he was dispatching a bicycle and other goodies to the Free French. How he escaped following it out of the plane he never knew! He was the Flight Engineer on the craft and was particularly friendly with his pilot Askew (who has a daughter Stella 10 days younger than myself) and Navigator MacFadyean (spelling?) who went to live at Westbrook End near Godalming of all places.
His flying stories were told matter of fact with no embroidery; everybody had a job to do and they just got on with it. He was particularly affected by the death of some of his friends who were in a plane that crashed in Norway. Routine early bombing missions were somewhat boring as his responsibilities amongst others were to wind the rear wheel up or down at take off and landing.
After the war he returned to his Civvy job with Portsmouth City Treasurer's Dept but each year he continued to serve in the Reserve; as a small child I recall being taken by relatives to a hilltop at a certain time and watched his flight fly over. He died in 1985 and now that my parents have both passed on to glory and I'm nearly 70 this is a very poignant memory and mental image for me.
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Sgt. Stanley Gordon Westbrook . Royal Canadian Air Force 99 Squadron from Galt, Ontario, Canada (d.22nd Oct 1941) Stanley Westbrook was born May 15, 1918 in Toronto, York County, Ontario, Canada, and went missing 22nd of October 1941 while flying in A Wellington Aircraft as an air gunner with 99 Squadron.
He was a member of the crew of a Wellington bomber that was fully equipped with camera and bombs, and the last communication received from the bomber advised that engine trouble had developed. The Military was unable to report whether the bomber had reached its objective and was returning to its base. They also had no idea what was the cause of the engine trouble.
His parents were Ernest Frederick Westbrook who was born September 5, 1884 at Brantford, Brant County, Ontario and his mother was Edna May Heatherington who was born May 18, 1887 in Carleton Place, Lanark County, Ontario.
There is very little information regarding the final flight of Stanley and his mates. He is not even listed with Squadron 99. He is remembered in the book of remembrance. I have put his service number as well as his name in the internet and in different military sites but nothing comes up. He and his mates seem to be forgotten. I was trying to find out who the other fellows on his squadron were, but to no avail. His flight and missing crew are nowhere to be found.
I have given this information from his service files. Our family thought he went down over the English Channel but no one knows where that information came from nor can it be confirmed.
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Sgt. Robert Henry Westbury . Royal Air Force My dad, Bob Westbury was shot down over France and parachuted out. He got lockjaw from the shrapnel and was given last rites twice. He was taken to Stalag Luft 3. I've got photos from the camp. My dad circled the people as they died of one thing or another. He was promoted to warrant officer after his release.
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Pte. Joseph Westby . British Army 7th Battalion Parachute Regiment C Coy Durham Light Infantry from Nottingham My dad, Joseph Westby wanted to be a soldier after seeing his uncle Joe in uniform - he had served in India. As he was too young to join up my Dad joined the Home Guard.
When he was old enough he joined up with the Durham Light Infantry. He was sent to Sleaford, Lincolnshire where he did his sixteen weeks initial training. He was one of a group of six men who volunteered to join the Parachute Regiment. He was sent to Derbyshire for parachute training and on completion was posted to Bulford barracks in Wiltshire. His company was dropped into Normandy in the early hours of June 5th. Their objective was to secure the River Orne and the canal and to take out the enemy gun battery at Morville.
He returned to England in September 1944. In December 1944 he was married. In March 1945 he was hospitalised in Belgium having sustained a broken leg. He was demobbed in 1946 and returned to Nottingham, where he still lives.
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Pte. Harry William Westcott . Australian Army 2/20 Btn. Australian Infantry from Queensland (d.19th May 1943) My uncle Pte Westcott was born in Aberdare, NSW, Australia. He died on 19th May 1943 in Malaysia and is commemorated in Kanchanaburi War Cemetery, Sp. Mem. 9M9.
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WO2 Jack Leonard Westcott . British Army Royal Signals from 41 Heyford Ave. Eastville Bristol Bristol blitz November 24th 1940. I have already told of our experience during my niece's Birthday. (Happy Birthday Jean). On the All Clear we went to bed for the few hours left, but all arose at the usual time and I prepared to go to school. The main reason was that I attended a Technical School on the other side of town and wanted to see the damage that the incendiaries and bombs had caused overnight.
I rode my bike into town with my friend who attended the same school and as we got to Lawford Street we had to divert due to the many premises that were still burning, but dodging the spaghetti-like hoses in the road and the showers of water being leaked from the many ruptures we reached the Old Market. Looking down Castle Street it seemed that every shop was either bombed or on fire with the road under masses of debris.
Continuing down towards Temple Meads we managed to get to Victoria Street where we could see many business places in ruins but continued on to school.
We found the school gate was locked but waited with 60 or 70 other boys swapping our recent experiences. Unfortunately the Technical School appeared to have been saved except for a few classrooms outside the main building. A teacher arrived to tell us that there would be no school for a few days and advised us to go home. This was our chance to have a good look around, so we made our way up Redcliff Hill past St. Mary Redcliff Church which was undamaged - and did survive the War without damage- but looking down Redcliff Street it was barred by the many fires still burning. So we diverted along Welsh Back and along the Floating Harbour to Bristol Bridge dodging individual premises still burning fiercely.
At Bristol Bridge it was the centre of destruction. High Street, Bridge Street and Victoria Street were impassable and we could go no further, but finding the steps to the Market we carried our bikes until we could ride down to Colston Street where we decided to turn for home, but even then there was more destruction in the Haymarket where Department Stores - Barton Wharehouses - were ablaze.
It took many years to rebuild the premises that were destroyed. In most cases the destroyed shops were relocated and modern premises provided.
There were many other blitzes on Bristol, but I think the first one was the worst. Afterwards a there was a system of Firewatchers who were recruited to quickly extinguish the incendiary bombs before they began to destroy the premises. A dangerous and nerve-wracking job as they were on the roof and vunerable to any bombs that landed nearby.
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LAC. Lionel Allen Westcott . Royal Air Force 115 Squadron from Pershore, Worcestershire (d.12th Apr 1940) On 12th April 1940 Lionel Westcott took part in a raid on Stavanger, Norway. Vickers Wellington Mk1C, P9284, KO-J operating out of RAF Marham, Norfolk was the lead aircraft of 2nd section. It was shot down over Stavanger and crashed on top of a bakery. All in the aircraft were killed.
- Pilot Officer 36223 Frederick Edward Barber, 26 years
- Pilot Officer 36180 David Alexander Rankin, (New Zealand) 25 years
- Sgt 580805 Alan Sydney Pearce, 20 years
- Sgt 514904 Geoffrey William James Juby, 28 years
- Leading Aircraftman 545537 Lionel Allen Westcott, 21 years
- Pilot Officer 76004(RAFVR) Peter Edward Tucker Bull, 26 years.
They are all buried in the Stavanger (Eiganes) Churchyard.
Lionel was the son of Leonard Edgar and Elsie Westcott of Pershore, Worcestershire.
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Sgt. Westerman . Royal Canadian Air Force 419 Sqd. from USA.
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T Westerman . British Army Royal Armoured Corps T Westerman served with the Royal Armoured Corps British Army. I have his unissued dogtags, made in preparation for deployment to the Far East and would love to get them home to his family. I am happy to cover all costs. If you are a family member or can put me in touch with them please get in touch. Update: Unfortunately The Wartime Memories Project has lost touch with Dan, his website, facebook page and email have all ceased to function. But if you can add any details about the person listed, please use the add to record link below.
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F/O. Phillip Samuel Western . Royal Air Force 630 Squadron from Rangitikei, New Zealand Phillip Western served with 630 Squadron. He died in the Rangitikei, New Zealand in 2011.
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PO. Robert John "Jackie" Westgate . Royal Canadian Air Force 97th Sqd. Squadron from East Angus, Quebec, Canada (d.11th July 1942) My Uncle Jackie, RCAF Pilot Officer Robert John Westgate, tailgunner served with RAF Woodhall Spa and was killed in action July 11, 1942.
I have a great deal of information about him from my Mom, his sister. He came from a very small town named East Angus, Quebec, in the Eastern Townships southeast of Montreal. He was one of six children of my grandparents and one of four sons. He also had two sisters, my Mom and her sister Carolyn. For a boy from a small town, signing up for the air force was an adventure, a chance to see the world and help the Allied Forces win the war.
He did all of his training first in Canada and further courses once he arrived in Lincolnshire. He was first stationed at Bourne and then his Squadron moved to RAF Woodhall Spa. He and his buddy, Nicky Nickerson, lived with a Mrs. Dowes on the street behind the centre of town where the memorial is. He used to play tennis on his days off and go to the Kinema theatre as well as the Petwood Hotel.
My Mom knows a lot about his flying experiences as he wrote many letters home to his brother, my Mom and his parents. I am primarily interested in finding out (for my Mom) what other things the boys would have done between ops. Would they have gone on day trips to other towns or did they have to stay close to the base in case they were needed? I would assume they did. The night Jackie was killed, he was not supposed to have been on that plane. He subbed for another crew member who was not able to go that night. Not sure of the exact reasons. Nonetheless, he jumped at the chance as that mission was a daring daylight raid over the port of Danzig, Poland. The idea was to avoid the searchlights from the UBoats below by flying low under the cloud cover and surprise them as they were used to the Lancs flying under the cover of darkness. It was a very dangerous mission and unfortunately, my Uncle's Lanc and another Lanc were caught by the flak and crashed in a forest south of the port. His plane was found two years later and he and his crew were buried in the Malbork Commonwealth Cemetery.
I am interested in making contact with the families of two of the crew members, Englishmen Eslick and Forsyth.
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P/O. Robert John Westgate . Royal Air Force 97 Squadron from East Angus, Quebec, Canada (d.11th July 1942) Robert Westgate, known as Jacckie was my uncle, he was a Tailgunner with 97 Squadron. I am trying to find a photo of my Uncle Jackie during his time at OTU 19 Kinloss such as a graduation photo or a photo of him with his pals while training.
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F/Lt. Ronald Kenneth Westhorp . Royal Air Force 635 Squadron
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SH Westlake . British Army 17/21st Lancers SH Westlake served with the 17/21st Lancers British Army. I have his unissued dogtags, made in preparation for deployment to the Far East and would love to get them home to his family. I am happy to cover all costs. If you are a family member or can put me in touch with them please get in touch. Update: Unfortunately The Wartime Memories Project has lost touch with Dan, his website, facebook page and email have all ceased to function. But if you can add any details about the person listed, please use the add to record link below.
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Sgt John Wilfred Noel Westlake. . RAF 12Sqd. (d.17th Jun 1943) Mid upper Gnr. John Westlake was killed on 17th June 1943 in Lancaster ED629 PH-K of 12sqd
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F/L J A Westland . RCAF 419 (Moose) Squadron F/L J A Westland J9072 was a pilot based at Middleton St George now Teeside airport and flew Halifax's from this base for 419 RCAF Moose Squadron which included VR;
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Pte. Edward Harold George "Goog" Westley . British Army from Teddington, Middlesex My brother, Edward Westley joined up, against my parents wishes, before his eighteenth birthday in 1939. After going to France into the
War, like thousands of men, came back over the Channel from Dunkirk. He was on a large tug boat called the Gracie Fields after the singer, when it got a direct hit by a bomb. Many were killed but my brother survived but was very badly injured. I wish I could find more info about this.nIf anyone can help I would appreciate it very much.
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Sgt. Herbert Charles "Sonny" Westley . Royal Air Force 99 Squadron (d.7th November 1940)
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DS Westmore . British Army DS Westmore served with the British Army. I have his unissued dogtags, made in preparation for deployment to the Far East and would love to get them home to his family. I am happy to cover all costs. If you are a family member or can put me in touch with them please get in touch. Update: Unfortunately The Wartime Memories Project has lost touch with Dan, his website, facebook page and email have all ceased to function. But if you can add any details about the person listed, please use the add to record link below.
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Flt/Lt. George Westmoreland DFC.. Royal Air Force 578 Sqd. My father George Westmoreland served in 578 Squadron as a navigator.
He retired from the RAF in 1971 with the rank of Flight Lieutenant. He continued flying until 1966 when he was serving in 209 Squadron in Singapore.
I remember he had a mounted 578 squadron crest, which I still have somewhere.
He also served in 158 Squadron and his crew in that squadron did an almost complete tour of about 23 operations, as a result of which he received a DFC, and other members of the crew were also awarded medals. I know this because as a relative I was invited several years ago to an exhibition at the Imperial War Museum North in Manchester, along with other crew member relatives including the widow of the pilot from George's crew.
I have somewhere a list of the operations George's crew undertook for 158 squadron.
I would be very interested to find out what my father did with 578 squadron.
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C Westoby . British Army Kings Own Yorkshire Light Infantry C Westoby served with the Kings Own Yorkshire Light Infantry British Army. I have his unissued dogtags, made in preparation for deployment to the Far East and would love to get them home to his family. I am happy to cover all costs. If you are a family member or can put me in touch with them please get in touch. Update: Unfortunately The Wartime Memories Project has lost touch with Dan, his website, facebook page and email have all ceased to function. But if you can add any details about the person listed, please use the add to record link below.
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