Flight Sgt Eddie Wise Mid Upper Gunner
HOME PAGE

About this site.

location & layout of airfield.

Timeline & airfield today

Squadrons at Fiskerton,

The Avro Lancaster

B.C Form 10/ Lancaster Pilots Notes

A Typical Raid.

Images Page1, Main airfield.

Images Page 2, Main Airfield.

Images page 3, Main airfield.

Image Page Dispersed sites,

Wartime Images, page 1

Wartime images, page 2

Wartime Images,page 3.

Wartime Images page 4

Misc. images.Page 1.

Misc images, Page 2

Misc Images Page 3

576 Sqn Lancaster PD 309 recovery

150 Squadron R.A.F.

GROUP CAPTAIN TERENCE JOHN ARBUTHNOT

576 Sqn Wing/Cmdr Basil Arthur Templeman-Rooke

576 Sqn Flt/Lt Leslie Brown

576 Sqn. Flt/Sgt Eddie Wise

49 sqn Flt/Lt Charles Dunnet

49 Sqn Fred Cooper.

576 Sqn F/O William Carland Johnston

49 Sqn Flt/Lt Victor Medway Arnold

576 Sqn Flt/Lt Charles Roach

 49 Sqn Sgt. E.B.(Ted) Cachart.

49 Sqn Sgt Douglas D.R. Dalaway

576 Sqn Flt/Lt Bertram W. Roberts

576 Sqn Flt/Sgt Johnny Musgrove

576 Sqn Flying Officer Edward L Saslove

49 Sqn Pilot Officer Edgar R. G. Haines D.F.M.

576 Sqn Flt/Lt Herbert Benson

576 Sqn Flying Officer Frank Wilson

576 Sqn Flt/Sgt Dennis Ovenden

576 Sqn Flt/Sgt Danny Ranchuk

576 Sqn Flt/Sgt Ken Tamkin.

49 Sqn Flying Officer Alexander V Bone

576 Sqn Sgt Stanley Lloyd

576 Sqn Warrant Officer Frederick Taylor, DFM

576 Sqn Warrant Officer Reg Croot

49 Sqn. S/L J.E Raw-Rees D.F.C.

576 Sqn Sgt Alfred Thorpe Turton

 576 Sqn Warrant Officer Eugene Patrick (Jimmy) Collins

576 Sqn. F/O R Bastick & Crew

576 Sqn. Sgt. George Lynn.

576 Sqn Airman Ron Kent

576 Sqn. Sgt. D.Girling.

576 Sqn F/O A.J.L Ridge

576 Sqn F/O Archibald de Largy Greig

Contact & links to similar sites,

MEMORIAL PAGE


The following information and photographs were supplied by Martin Wise. His Late Father was a 576 Sqn. Mid-Upper Gunner who completed

30 ops whilst flying from Fiskerton.

He was: Flt. Sgt. Eddie Wise. RAFVR. He and his crew completed their tour of 30 ops flying from Fiskerton during 1944-1945.

 

Edwin James Wise was born on the 24th of February 1914 in the London Borough of Lambeth. His Civil occupation was that of Plumber.

Marrying Edith Blackham from Dartford on the 11th of February 1936, Eddie settled down to married life and had two sons, Martin and Terence.

On the 14th of December 1942 Eddie now 28 years old decided to join the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve at No1 Air crew Recruiting Centre, Euston in London.

His initial basic training in the Air Force was at No 14 Initial training Wing based at Bridlington in East Yorkshire.

Once Basic training was completed Eddie was posted on to No1 Air Gunnery School at RAF Pembrey in West Wales on the 3rd of April 1943. Completing his

Gunnery course Eddie received his Air Gunners Brevet and was promoted Sergeant.

11th June 1943 saw Eddie  posted again, this time to No 1 Air Armaments School at RAF Manby in Lincolnshire where he undertook training as an Air Gunnery Instructor.

September 7th 1943 saw Eddie commence flying as a qualified Instructor of Air Gunnery. This position took him to RAF BallyKelly in Northern Ireland,

a Coastal Command Station then RAF Downham Market in Norfolk.

On the 23th of May 1944 Eddie was posted to 28 Operational Training Unit at RAF Wymeswold, 3 miles east of Loughborough, Leicestershire.

This station, equipped with the Vickers Wellington Medium Bomber was the main aircraft at this period that novice crews trained on prior to moving on to the

Heavy Conversion Units of Bomber Command and conversion to the Avro Lancaster.

He did not stay with his O.T.U. crew on completion of this training but was instead on the 20th June 1944 posted to RAF Bircotes on the

Nottinghamshire / South Yorkshire border some 10 miles South of Doncaster.

This station was the base that No 1 Group Communications Flight operated from supporting No 1 Groups Headquarters in the nearby town of Bawtry.

July the 29th 1944 saw Eddie posted back to 28 O.T.U. as an Instructor but by August10th 1944 Eddie was once more posted, this time to RAF Lindholme (11 Base)

the Headquaters of No 1 Groups Heavy Conversion Units. The resident unit at Lindholme was 1656 H.C.U.

Lindholme had satellite stations at Sandtoft (1667 H.C.U.) and Blyton (1662 H.C.U.) with a beam approach flight at Sturgate (1520 B.A.T. Flight)

Converting to the Lancaster at Lindholme , Eddie with his new crew were finally posted to Fiskerton and operations with 576 Squadron on the 10th of October 1944.

The crew were

Flying Officer “Herby” Herbert Pilot

Sgt Heller Flight Engineer

Sgt Thornwell Bomb Aimer

Pilot Officer Scott Navigator

Sgt Stephens Wireless Operator

Eddie as Mid Upper Gunner

Warrant Officer Turley Rear Gunner

 

Starting their first Operation on the 9th of November 1944 to Wanne Eikel in the Ruhr, the target that night was the Synthetic Oil refinery in the town.

The crews last Operation was on the 30th April 1945 to Delft airfield in the Netherlands dropping food parcels as part of Operation Manna.

June 13th 1945 saw Eddie posted to the Air crew reception centre at RAF Scorton near Catterick in North Yorkshire. But demob was not to be and

Eddie by August 2ndwas on the move again this time to No8 School of Technical training at Weeton near Blackpool.

October 11th 1945 saw Eddie posted to No5 Personnel Despatch Centre at Lytham-St Annes some 5 miles South of Blackpool.

Moving to No 9 Personnel Dispatch Centre RAF North Weald and from there Eddie was posted overseas

to RAF Manipur On the 17th of November 1945. This airfield is now in present day Pakistan.

Release from the RAF came on January 26th 1946 Eddie returned to England and his family.

In early 1947 Eddie moved to Canada with the help of his Canadian Aircrew, Doug Thornwell and Johnny Stephens. The rest of the family following in

September 1947 on the Liner Aquitania.

The family moved to the United States in 1960.

Eddie passed away in 1969 aged 55 years and is buried in the Hollywood Cemetery, Richmond, Virginia.     

 

 

Flight Sgt Edwin James Wise

Flight Sgt Wise 3rd from left stood next to the pilot Flying Officer (Herby) Herbert.

Flight Sgt Wise's service record with the RAF: Page 1

Flight Sgt Wise Service record Page 2

Crew Operations

An excellent image of 576 Squadron Lancaster UL-F-Freddie

Landing at Fiskerton,after the Nordhausen Operation 3rd April 1945.

Lancaster LM 227 I-Item, one of the lancasters that the crew flew in, in this case it is pictured in the latter part of 1944 with the Station Commander Group Captain Terence Arbuthnot waving the crew off on Operations (5th from right).

Nose art Detail of Lancaster LM 227 I-Item

War time image of same nose art. This Lancaster, one of 4 Centurions that served with the Squadron completed exactly 100 Operations and was struck of charge and scrapped on 16th October 1945. Of the 7,377 Lancasters built between 1942 and 1945 only 35 ever completed 100 or more Operations

This picture, taken from the Film "Night Bombers" shows the WAAF Corporal at No1 Group HQ, Bawtry Hall, Doncaster walking past the Order of Battle Board detailing 576 Squadron Crews( including the crew of Flying Officer (Herby) Herbert) for the Operation against the German Town of Kleve on 7th February 1945 supporting the British 15th (Scottish) Division attack on the Town. 295 Lancasters and 10 Mosquitos of Nos 1 and 8 Groups took part in this Operation. 1 Lancaster was lost.

Eddie with two friends pictured post War. On the left is a Belgian aircrew (Air Gunner) student. In the middle was the pilot of a Miles Martinet target tug aircraft. Eddie to the right of the picture.