No. 640 Squadron RAF explained

Unit Name:	No. 640 Squadron RAF
Dates:	7 January 1944 – 7 May 1945
Branch:	Royal Air Force
Role:	Bomber Squadron
Command Structure:	No. 4 Group, RAF Bomber Command
Garrison:	RAF Leconfield, East Riding of Yorkshire
Garrison Label:	Base
Identification Symbol Label:	Squadron Badge heraldry
Identification Symbol 2:	C8 (Jan 1944 – May 1945)
Identification Symbol 2 Label:	Squadron Codes
Aircraft Bomber:	Handley-Page Halifax

No. 640 Squadron RAF was a heavy bomber squadron of the Royal Air Force during the Second World War.

History

No. 640 Squadron was first formed at RAF Leconfield, East Riding of Yorkshire on 7 January 1944, from 'C' Flight of No. 158 Squadron RAF. It was equipped with Halifax Mk.III bombers, and operated as part of No. 4 Group in Bomber Command. It re-equipped with Halifax VI bombers in March 1945, and was disbanded at RAF Leconfield on 7 May of that year.

Operational highlights

• First Operational Mission 5 Halifaxes bombed Berlin while 3 others aborted on the night from 20 to 21 January 1944
• Last Operational Mission 18 Halifaxes bombed gun batteries on the island of Wangerooge on 25 April 1945

Listed below are further operational highlights for the Wakeman crew (see photograph right)^[1] ! Position !! Name crew member !! Known as

Captain		Jimmy
Navigator	P/O Reginald William Parr, DFC	Reg
Bomb Aimer	F/O C.B.Morrison, RCAF, DFC	Cliff
W/Op	F/Sgt. H.Bearyman	Harry
Flt.Eng.	F/Sgt. P.McPhie	Peter
Mid-upper Gunner	F/S R.Thomas	Tommy
Rear Gunner	F/Sgt. E.G.Humphries	Eric

Individual missions for the above named crew, data from^{[2] [3] [4] [5] [6]} ! Date (all dates are in 1944) !! Off !! Back !! Target !! Mission Detail !! Bomb Load (lbs) !! Individual Aircraft Code !! Aircraft Serial No.

6 August	11:12	14:27	Forêt de Nieppe	V-Weapon Sites.	16×500	X
7 August	20:53	01:48	May-sur-Orne	Army Support – Five aiming points in front of Allied ground troops in Normandy.	9×1000	H	NA573
9 August	11:53	15:28	Le Châtellier	Chemical works.	4×500	X
10 August	20:50	03:50	Dijon	A railway junction and the railway yards.	4×500	J
11 August	18:22	22:07	Étaples	Railway bridge.	4×500	Z
15 August	09:40	13:45	Eindhoven	Airfield	4×500	B	MZ561
16 August	21:40	01:45	Kiel		4×500	B	MZ561
18 August	22:20	03:00	Sterkrade/Holten, Ruhr.	Ruhrchemie AG synthetic oil plant (SBC = small bomb container)	1×2000, 4×SBC	B	MZ561
9 September	06:44	11:09	Le Havre	Abandoned – cloud.	16×500	G
11 September	05:19	09:49	Cadillac		7×1000, 6×500	K
12 September	16:15	20:50	Münster		1×2000 & Incendiary	P	MZ678
17 September	06:52	10:43	Boulogne	German positions in preparation for an attack by Allied troops.	9×1000, 4×500	J	NP631
25 September	06:35	10:36	Calais	German defensive positions.	9×1000, 4×500	J	NP931
27 September	09:29	13:03	Calais	German defensive positions.	9×1000, 4×500	D	LW554
30 September	09:45	14:22	Bottrop, Ruhr.	Oil plant.	16×500	H	MZ344
6 October	14:28	19:04	Sterkrade/Holten, Ruhr.	Ruhrchemie AG Synthetic oil plant.	16×500	J	NP931
7 October	11:45	16:03	Kleve	Army support – Approach routes by which German units could threaten the vulnerable Allied right flank near Nijmegen.	9×1000, 4×500	J	NP931
15 October	00:16	05:53	Duisburg		8×1000, 5×500	K	MZ930
15 October	17:48	21:41	Wilhelmshaven		8×1000, 5×500	K	MZ930
25 October	12:09	17:51	Essen	Industrial concerns, particularly to the Krupps steelworks.	9×1000, 4×500	J	NP931
28 October	09:45	13:05	Walcheren	Gun positions at 5 places on the rim of the island.	1×2000, 7×1000, 4×500	L	NP931
31 October	18:03	23:10	Cologne		1×2000, 6×1000, 5×500	G	MZ404
2 November	16:05	22:00	Düsseldorf		1×2000 & Incendiary	J	NP931
4 November	17:34	22:34	Bochum	Industrial areas, particularly the steelworks.	1×2000, 6×1000, 5×500	J	NP931
6 November	11:42	16:42	Gelsenkirchen	Nordstern synthetic-oil plant.	1×2000, 6×1000, 5×500	J	NP931
16 November	12:43	17:30	Jülich	Army support – cut communications behind the German lines.	1×2000, 6×1000, 5×500	J	NP931
21 November	17:25	23:55	Sterkrade/Holten, Ruhr.	Ruhrchemie AG Synthetic oil plant.	16×500	J	NP931
29 November	02:26	08:22	Essen	Industrial areas, including the Krupps works.	1×2000, 16×500	J	NP931
2 December	17:35	00:07	Hagen	Industrial areas – unknown at the time this included a factory making U-boat accumulator batteries.	1×2000 & Incendiary	J	NP931
12 December	16:24	21:58	Essen	Industrial areas, including the Krupps works.	1×2000, 4×1000, 6×500	J	NP931
22 December	15:05	21:33	Bingen am Rhein	Railway yards.	1×2000, 4×1000, 6×500	J	NP931
24 December	11:17	16:42	Essen/Mülheim	Airfields.	5×1000, 8×250	J	NP931

Aircraft operated

Aircraft operated by no. 640 Squadron RAF, data from ! From !! To !! Aircraft !! Version

January 1944	March 1945		Mk.III
March 1945	May 1945	Handley-Page Halifax	Mk.VI

Squadron bases

Base operated by no. 640 Squadron RAF, data from ! From !! To !! Name

7 January 1944

7 May 1945

RAF Leconfield, East Riding of Yorkshire

References

Bibliography

• Book: Bowyer . Michael J.F. . John D.R. . Rawlings . Squadron Codes, 1937–56 . Cambridge, UK . Patrick Stephens Ltd. . 1979 . 0-85059-364-6 .
• Book: Delve, Ken . The Source Book of the RAF . Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK . Airlife Publishing . 1994 . 1-85310-451-5.
• Book: Flintham . Vic . Andrew . Thomas . Combat Codes: A Full Explanation and Listing of British, Commonwealth and Allied Air Force Unit Codes since 1938 . Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK . Airlife Publishing Ltd. . 2003 . 1-84037-281-8.
• Book: Halley, James J. . The Squadrons of the Royal Air Force & Commonwealth, 1918–1988 . 1988 . Tonbridge, Kent, UK . Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd.. 0-85130-164-9 .
• Book: Jefford, C.G. . RAF Squadrons, a Comprehensive record of the Movement and Equipment of all RAF Squadrons and their Antecedents since 1912 . 2001 . 2nd . Airlife Publishing Ltd. . Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK . 1-85310-053-6 .
• Book: Moyes, Philip J.R. . Bomber Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft . London . Macdonald and Jane's (Publishers) Ltd. . 1976 . 0-354-01027-1 .
• Book: Norman, Bill . Halifax Squadron: the Wartime Bombing Operations of No. 640 Squadron, Leconfield . Preston, Lancashire . Compaid Graphics/Bill Norman Publications . 2005 . 0-9547325-1-0.
• Book: Norman, Bill . No. 640 (Halifax) Squadron, RAF Leconfield: a Diary of Wartime Bombing Operations . Warrington . Compaid Graphics/Bill Norman Publications . 1999. 1-900604-08-6.

External links

• History of No. 640 Squadron (broken link)
• No. 640 Squadron RAF movement and equipment history (broken link)
• Squadron histories for nos. 621–650 sqn of RAF Web (broken link)
• A Facebook group for relatives of squadron members

Notes and References

1. Reginald William Parr Flight Log 1944
2. Web site: RAF History - Bomber Command 60th Anniversary . 24 May 2007 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20070607035123/http://www.raf.mod.uk/bombercommand/aug44.html . 7 June 2007 .
3. Web site: RAF History - Bomber Command 60th Anniversary . 20 February 2008 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20080314224553/http://www.raf.mod.uk/bombercommand/sep44.html . 14 March 2008 .
4. Web site: RAF History - Bomber Command 60th Anniversary . 11 June 2007 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20070611024544/http://www.raf.mod.uk/bombercommand/oct44.html . 11 June 2007 .
5. Web site: Archived copy . 19 November 2009 . 15 October 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20121015205930/http://www.raf.mod.uk/bombercommand/Nov.html . dead .
6. Web site: RAF History - Bomber Command 60th Anniversary . 7 April 2011 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110606110620/http://www.raf.mod.uk/bombercommand/dec44.html . 6 June 2011 .