256521 Sgt. Walter Charnock Royal Air Force 576 Squadron from:42 Woodbank Crescent, Sheffield My late father Walter Charnock was in 576 Squadron based at Elsham Wolds and mostly manned the rear gunner position, but on occasions manned the mid upper gunner position.
On the night of the 6th/7th June, they were flying in Lancaster ME 811 & were to bomb a road and rail bridge at Vire in Normandy. A number of German fighters pounced on them & shot them down in flames. Walter balled out along with Bill Williams and they later met up and were hidden together in Madame Yvonne Boutrois's barn on her farm.
They heard that the Pilot Gordon Bain and the wireless operator Thomas Mitchell had been found and taken to the farm of Mme Besnier. They were moved around a number of times and the French were very kind to them. They were issued with false papers, Walter was renamed George and Bill was named Jean and they wore borrowed clothes and helped in the fields with hay making. Walter's hair was bleached blonde and the locals referred to him as petit blonde.
Word passed around that 2 English flyers were being hidden, so they were moved across the fields to a small hut, then a horse and cart arrived with a false bottom and they were hidden under crates of chickens and transferred to another barn, where they stayed for around a month, working in the fields during the day.
After many different billets, they arrived at the transit camp outside Bayeux and they were happy to meet up with F/O Bain and Sgt Mitchell. There were many evaders waiting to be transported home. Eventually Walter and Bill along with a Canadian soldier they had befriended, found places on a Dakota Air Ambulance and were flown to Northolt aerodrome, then transferred by coach to the Marylebone Hotel, which was being used as a transit camp.
Walter kept in touch with the Canadian for a number of years and after his death in January 2005, I wrote to notify him of my Dads passing, but never received a reply.
After the war my Mother Irene (then married to my Father) received a lovely letter (in French, which was translated) dated 14th of January 1945 from Chenedolle from N Picot or Sicot?
The French people who helped all the WW2 evaders were very brave and did so at great risk to their own and their families lives.
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