Commonwealth War Graves Protestant Churchyard Driesum
The Cemetery of the Protestant Church in Driesum contains four Commonwealth War Graves. These are the graves of airmen of No. 77 Squadron RAF, who died on 27-02-1942. Sergeant (Air Gnr.) Edmund Sydney Ayton, 547973, age 26 Squadron Leader (Pilot) Leslie Hugh William Parkin, 37982, age 30 Sergeant (Pilot) Douglas John Sandlin, 655186, age 22 Sergeant (W.Op./Air Gnr.) Wilfred Whittam, 993807, age 28 On 27 February 1942 departed from RAF Leeming, the Whitley Z9280 of No. 77 Squadron RAF, with the mission: a bombing raid on the German battleship Scharnhorst. The aircraft was part of a formation of 33 bombers with the same mission. Z9280 was shot down over the Netherlands by German night-fighter Heinz Vinke, 1V./NJG1 and crashed at 2258 in Driesum. Four of the five crew members lost their lives in the crash. The fifth, (W.Op./Obs.) R.C.S. Hancock, 24748 was taken prisoner of war by the Germans. In total, four bombers were lost during this mission, no bombs had hit the Scharnhorst. We like to add more information about the casualty buried in this grave. If you know more about this grave, please [url="/contact.asp"]contact[/url] us.