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No Turning Back by Robert Taylor.
A Lancaster of No. 61 Squadron, RAF, piloted by Flt. Lt. Bill Reid, under attack
from a German Fw190 en route to Dusseldorf on the night of November 3rd, 1943.
Already injured in a previous attack, Bill Reid was again wounded but pressed on
for another 50 minutes to bomb the target, then fly his badly damaged aircraft
on the long journey home. The courage and devotion to duty that earned Bill Reid
the Victoria Cross, was a hallmark of RAF bomber crews throughout their long six
year campaign. |
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No Turning Back by Robert Taylor.
A Lancaster of No. 61 Squadron, RAF, piloted by Flt. Lt. Bill Reid, under attack from a German Fw190 en route to Dusseldorf on the night of November 3rd, 1943. Already injured in a previous attack, Bill Reid was again wounded but pressed on for another 50 minutes to bomb the target, then fly his badly damaged aircraft on the long journey home. The courage and devotion to duty that earned Bill Reid the Victoria Cross, was a hallmark of RAF bomber crews throughout their long six year campaign.
Aircrew edition. Signed limited edition of 600 prints. Paper size 32 inches x 24 inches (81cm x 61cm). Price £200.00 Signed by Flight Lieutenant Bill Reid VC (deceased), Air Commodore Wilf Burnett DSO OBE DFC AFC (deceased), Air Marshal Sir Ivor Broom KCB CBE DSO DFC AFC (deceased) and Squadron Leader Tony Iveson DFC.
Aircrew edition artist proofs. Limited edition of 25 artist proofs. Paper size 32 inches x 24 inches (81cm x 61cm). Price £325.00 Signed by Flight Lieutenant Bill Reid VC (deceased), Air Commodore Wilf Burnett DSO OBE DFC AFC (deceased), Air Marshal Sir Ivor Broom KCB CBE DSO DFC AFC (deceased) and Squadron Leader Tony Iveson DFC.
Bomber Command Edition. Signed limited edition of 200 prints. Paper size 32 inches x 24 inches (81cm x 61cm). Price £295.00 Signed by Flight Lieutenant Bill Reid VC (deceased), Air Commodore Wilf Burnett DSO OBE DFC AFC (deceased), Air Marshal Sir Ivor Broom KCB CBE DSO DFC AFC (deceased), Squadron Leader Tony Iveson DFC, Flt Sergeant Stan Bradford DFM, Group Captain Dudley Burnside DSO OBE DFC* (deceased), Squadron Leader Lawrence Curtis DFC* (deceased), Group Captain William Farquharson DFC, Flt Lieutenant Bob Knights DSO, DFC (deceased), Flight Lieutenant Douglas Newham LVO DFC, Flight Lieutenant Kenneth Wolstenholme DFC* (deceased) and Flight Lieutenant Dennis Woolley DFC DFM.
ITEM CODE RT0304
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No Turning Back by Robert Taylor
- The Signatures
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 | Flight Lieutenant Bill Reid VC (deceased)
Volunteering for RAF aircrew in 1940, Bill Reid learned to fly in California, training on the Stearman, Vultee and Harvard. After gaining his pilots wings back in England he flew Wellingtons before moving on to Lancasters in 1943. On the night of Nov 3rd 1943, his Lancaster suffered two severe attacks from Luftwaffe night fighters, badly wounding Reid, killing his navigator and radio operator, and severely damaging the aircraft. Bill flew on 200 miles to accurately bomb the target and get his aircraft home. For this act of outstanding courage and determination he was awarded the Victoria Cross. Died 28th November 2001.
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 | Air Commodore Wilf Burnett DSO OBE DFC AFC (deceased)
Canadian Wilf Burnett joined the RAF before the war and at the outbreak of hostilities was flying Hampdens. He completed his first tour of 30 operations in September 1940, flying with 49 Sqn at Scampton. His crew had bombed invasion barges in the Channel ports, mined enemy waters, operated against the Ruhr, and taken part in the first raids against Berlin. In July 1941 he was posted to 408 (Goose) Sqn RCAF, at Syerston, where one night in January 1942, returning from Hamburg, their Hampden crashed in extreme weather. Wilf was the sole survivor, and he was hospitalised. Recovering he was accepted to command 138 (Special Duties) Sqn at Tempsford who were engaged in dropping agents and supplies to the Resistance in occupied countries flying Halifaxes, later Stirlings. He died 26th November 2006.
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Wilf Burnett signing the print - A Hard Lesson to Learn - by Adrian Rigby |
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 | Air Marshal Sir Ivor Broom KCB CBE DSO DFC AFC (deceased)
Entering the RAF in 1940 he joined No 114 Squadron as a sergeant pilot flying Blenheims. After 12 operations he and his crew were allocated to No 105 Squadron and then No 107 Squadron, the last remaining Blenheim Squadron in Malta. The Squadron remained there without relief for five months carrying out low level attacks on the shipping. Very few of the original crews survived the detachment, in fact he was commissioned during this period, when 107 Squadron had lost all their officers and for a short time was the only officer, other than the CO, in the Squadron. At the end of this tour he was awarded the DFC. In early 1943 he became one of the first Mosquito instructors in the Pathfinder Force and later moved to No 571 Squadron with the Light Night Strike Force. He then formed No 163 Squadron as acting Wing Commander. He was awarded a bar to his DFC for a low level moonlight mining attack on the Dormund - Ems Canal from 50ft and then a second bar for getting a 4000lb bomb into the mouth of a railway tunnel during the final German Ardennes offensive. During his time on Mosquitoes his navigator was Tommy Broom, together they formed an inseparable combination. Remaining with the RAF after WWII and in accordance with peacetime rules for a much smaller Air Force he was reduced in rank first to Squadron Leader and then to Flight Lieutenant in 1948. Promoted to Air Marshal in 1974 he became the Head of the UK National Air Traffic Services and was the first serving officer to be appointed to the Board of the Civil Aviation Authority. Retiring from the RAF in 1979 he has been actively engaged in civil aviation since then. He died 24th January 2003.
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Squadron Leader Tony Iveson DFC
Tony Iveson fought in the Battle of Britain with RAF Fighter Command, as a Sergeant pilot, joining 616 Squadron at Kenley flying Spitfires on 2 September 1940. Commissioned in 1942, Tony undertook his second tour transferring to RAF Bomber Command, where he was selected to join the famous 617 Squadron, flying Lancasters. He took part in most of 617 Squadron's high precision operations, including all three sorties against the German battleship Tirpitz, and went on to become one of the most respected pilots in the squadron.
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Flt Sergeant Stan Bradford DFM
A mid-upper gunner on Lancaster ED308 'D-Donald' of 57 squadron RAF Bomber Command, then based at Scampton. By the end of his tour in March 1944 Stan had become an air Ace, credited by 5 Group with the shooting down of 6 enemy fighters, including a Bf109 over France on his very first operation on the night of August 27th 1943.
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Group Captain Dudley Burnside DSO OBE DFC* (deceased)
Dudley joined the RAF in 1935 and in 1937 went to India flying on the North West Frontier, and Iraq. At the outbreak of war he went to Burma and in 1942 was fortunate to escape when his airfield was overrun by the Japanese. Escaping back to England he took command of 195 Squadron RCAF flying Wellingtons. In 1943 he became CO of 427 Squadron on Halifax's, later converting to Lancasters. In the Korean War he commanded a Flying Boat Wing operating Sunderlands. He retired from the RAF in 1962. He died 20th September 2005.
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Squadron Leader Lawrence Curtis DFC* (deceased)
Joining the RAF in 1939, he was posted as a wireless operator firstly to 149 Squadron and then 99 Squadron on Wellingtons. He then joined OTU on Whitleys before moving firstly to 158 Squadron, and then 617 Squadron on Lancasters, where he was Unit Signals Leader for 18 months. After bomber operations he joined Transport Command in 1944. He died on 21st June 2008.
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Group Captain William Farquharson DFC
William Farquharson was a pilot with 115 Squadron and flew Lancasters with 195 Squadron.
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 | Flt Lieutenant Bob Knights DSO, DFC (deceased)
A member of the elite 617 Dambusters squadron, Bob Knights had a key role on the night before D-Day. With the rest of the squadron he flew on Operation Taxable which simulated the approach of the invasion across the Pas de Calais by dropping metal strips of window to a very precise pattern. The enemy was completely deceived and kept most of their best troops on the wrong side of the Seine. Bob Knights had already flown a full operational tour with 619 Squadron Lancasters, including eight trips to Berlin, before volunteering for 617 Squadron. Under Cheshire he flew on some of the squadrons most challenging precision operations and later under Willie Tait took part in the attack that finally destroyed the Tirpitz. Seconded to BOAC in December 1944 he stayed with the airline after the war for a 30 year long career. He died 4th December 2004.
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Flight Lieutenant Douglas Newham LVO DFC
Douglas Newham was a navigator with 156 and 150 Squadrons before transferring to the Lancasters of 10 Squadron.
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Flight Lieutenant Kenneth Wolstenholme DFC* (deceased)
Ken Wolstenholme was a pilot first with 107 Sqn flying Blenheims before joining 8 Group Pathfinders flying Mosquitos. He completed 100 ops. After the war he became a famous sports broadcaster with the BBC. He died 26th March 2002.
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Flight Lieutenant Dennis Woolley DFC DFM
Flight Lieutenant Dennis William, Woolley. DFC, DFM. 106 (5 Group) and 83 (S-PFF- Group) Squadrons. 1940 - Volunteered for air crew service. 1941 - Trained as an Air Observer in Manitoba. 1942 - Did 1st tour, on Manchesters (6 trips) and on Lancasters (27 trips). Awarded DFM. 1942 - 3 - Instructor at Winthorpe, Notts. 1943 - Engaged in special operations relating to the advancement of the Italian campaign. Based latterly in Sicily. 1944 - Did 2nd tour in Bomber Command in 83 (PFF) Squadron. 25 trips in Lancasters. Awarded DFC and Pathfinder Badge. 1944 - 5 - Joined Transport Command, Transatlantic Ferry Unit based at Darval, Montreal. 1945 - 6 - Seconded to what is now known as British Airways. Based at Poole, navigating Sunderland flying boats to and from Singapore. 1946 - Demobilised."
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