I was wondering if Mr. France might remember my Uncle who flew with the 200th. He was Killed in action off west Africa. I have insterted the story below. My Uncle was George (Bud) Goodwin from Creston BC.
Among the most sensitive parts of the atlantic were the waters off west Africa. by this route passed our shipping to and from South Africa, the middle and far east, and Australia. Free-town, in Sierra Leone, hot, sweaty and malodorous, was very important as a port of call, and as a terminal for traffic to and from the americas. The German surface ships and submarines haunted it continuously and found many victims. One of the RAAF squadrons guarding those waters in 1943 was 200 Squadron. Stationed at Yundum, in Gambia, it was commanded by wing commander W.H.Ingle and equipped with Hudsons and Liberators. In early august, in addition to it's normal duties of reconnaissance, escort and attack, the squadron had a special requirement to keep guard over the cable-laying ship Lady Denison Plender". The heat and humidity were at their tropical worst. Newly commanding one of the squadrons liberators was 29 year old flying officer Lloyd Allan Trigg of the RNZAF. He had flown over 45 operational sorties (mostly hudsons) and had displayed both skill and courage of a very high order which had won him the distinguished flying cross. At half past seven in the morning of august 11 he took off from yundum on a recon specially ordered by air hq. It was his first operational sortie in a B24 Liberator and sadly to be his last. his crew consisted of pilot officer George "Bud" Goodwin as second pilot, R.Marinovich, J.Townshend, T.Soper, R.Bonnick, A.Bennet, and L.Frost. On this occasion the aircraft was armed with bombs. Trigg was given a defined area to patrol, but at 11:am was diverted to hunt for a u-boat spotted by a catalina flying boat and attacked without success. After searching for some hours, Trigg found the u-boat on the surface and bore down to attack. He was accosted by accurate shell fire at a range of some miles. The aircraft was hit several times. It burst into flames, which enveloped the tail, and it's destruction by fire was certain. Trigg would have been fully justified at this point in breaking off the engagement and ditching in the sea. He chose not to do so and swung in low and straight to make his run in. It was the most crucial minute, when the pilot could not maneuver and presented an easy target. Every split second multiplied the likelihood of instant destruction . Despite the flames and shell bursts, Trigg executed a masterly attack. With enemy projectiles actually streaming in to his open bomb-doors, he skimmed over the submarine at 40 feet and released his bombs accurately astride it, with devastating effect. Immediately afterwards the blazing aircraft crashed into the sea and all eight of the crew were lost. Hours later an aircraft on air-sea rescue spotted a rubber dinghy crowded with men. It was the liberators' own dinghy but the men in it were survivors of the sunken u-boat [u-468]. Their testimony it was that formed the basis for the citation of Trigg's Victoria cross. It was a rare case of the enemy providing the evidence: otherwise there would have been no "VC".
My uncle T Soper was the rear gunner on this aircraft.
I would be keen to correspond with any person who could provide more info, photos etc about my uncle and/or the crew of this aircraft.
Please email me on jamie@bnmgroup.com
Thanks
Jamie Soper
Sydney
Australia
