John Hamilton Charles

Reg. R5561 Avro Lancaster Mk 1. Takeoff at 00:40 hrs for participation in the first 1000 bomber raid, target Köln, Nordrhein-Westfalen.

The aircraft was coned by the 3./Flakscheinwerfer-Abteilung 159 and hit by heavy (schwere) Flak; crashed Niederaussem 21 km WNW of Köln city centre. All the members of the crew died in the crash:

86728 F/O Peter Frederick Barlow Bluett RAFVR – wireless operator/air gunner(gazetted 23 August 1940).
R/59571 F/Sgt John Hamilton Charles RCAF – air gunner
637104 F/Sgt Robert Gordon Fawkes RAF – wireless operator/air gunner
J/15251 P/O John Douglas Patey RCAF – air gunner
122398 P/O John Bennett Underwood RAF – pilot (prev. NCO 910545, gazetted 23 June 1942)
41637 P/O Benson Usher RNZAF - pilot
1160536 Sgt Anthony Williamson RAFVR - observer

Flight Sergeant Charles is buried in Rheinberg War Cemetery, Germany (joint grave 1. E. 17-18, F/Sgt Fawkes). Other members of the crew are buried in adjacent graves.

CWGC Additional information: Son of Maj. John Leslie Charles, D.S.O., Royal Canadian Engineers, and Elene Violet Charles, of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.

CWGC headstone personal inscription: 'He loved deeply and was given great love and gave all so others might love'