Hammer

£3,600

WW2 RAF Special Duties Squadron D-Day, Arnhem, Agent Dropping SOE Operations Medals and Archive.  A rare and historical archive of Flight Lieutenant G.F. Andrews who flew as a navigator with 295 Squadron responsible for the dropping of Paratroopers, SOE agents supplies to Resistance units in occupied Europe, Gliding Towing for D-Day and Operational Market Garden the air assault at Arnhem. Comprising: Medal Group: 1939/45 Star, Aircrew Europe Star France & Germany Clasp, War Medal. The group remains in the original forwarding box addressed to F/L G.F. ANDREWS. Aircrew Log Book. Covering a period of 30th November 1942 to 16th June 1946. gives detailed accounts of operations, Agent drops, supply drops, Glider Towing, etc. A remarkable photographic archive showing shots of gliders and aircraft air to air, including gliders on route to Arnhem. Plus other ephemera. Also included are the medals awarded to Flight Lieutenant Andrews father awarded to M. 85189 W R ANDREWS SHPT HMS RENOWN. Comprising: 1914/15 Star, British War Medal, Victory Medal, 1939/45 Star, Atlantic Star, War Medal. Mounted as worn, but please note WW2 medals in box of issue. Flight Lieutenant George Frederick Andrews on joining the RAF volunteered for aircrew and trained as a Navigator. His logbook records his first flight on the 30th November 1942. Whilst at 28 OTU he undertook his first operation over enemy territory on the 11th June 1943 a Nickel run to Le Man’s the port engine of the Wellington bomber noted as U/S. In January 1944 he was posted to 295 Squadron although classified as Transport Command the squadron was operational flying the Albemarle twin engineed aircraft. His first mission with 295 was to Le Man’s on the 11 March 1944 6 containers + 2 Packages, the later usually referring to a SOE agent. The squadron undertook Glider towing training and the log reports on the 5/6 June 1944 “Operation Tonga Invasion of continent France 10 Paratroopers 4 containers dropped near Caen at 00.24 No. 4 aircraft”. These would be some of the first Allied troops to land at part of D Day. The log then states for the 6th June “Operation Mallard Horsa tow (7,000 lbs) OX and Bucks 6th Airborne Div Landed at Benouville NE Caen at 20.53 No5 aircraft”. The following moths saw a steady flow of supply and agent dropping and on the 17th September 1944 “Operations Holland Mass Airborne operation on Dutch-German frontier behind enemy lines Horsa tow (Lt Turner + Sgt Hamilton) carrying Portion Airborne HQ landed 10 miles S S W of Nijmegen). This operation is complimented by a number of original photographs showing gliders being towed and also landed on the ground. He would return to the Arnhem area supply drops on the 19th, 20th and 23rd September, each time listing the drop contents and reporting heavy flak. In November he took part in a supply drop to Norway. He ended his tour with the squadron in December 1944 and in February 1945 was posted to 109 OTU and then in June 1945 was seconded as a navigator to BOAC. He was released from the RAF in August 1946 and continued to work as a navigator in the commercial sector. Walter Robert Andrew was a Dockyard Shipwright who enlisted into the Royal Navy in 1915. Remaining with the RN after the end of the Great War, he was pensioned in 1936 and recalled at the outbreak of the second world war.