Research

To assist those interested in finding out more about the Bomber Command service history of a family member, friend or relative, Chris Newey and Carolyn Clark have compiled a set of online resources to explore.

We will keep this as a live resource and welcome further suggestions of information sources that may be useful for other researchers.

The Mosquito was one of the most successful aircraft of WWII and surely the most versatile. Used by Bomber Command as both pathfinder and light-bomber, it also served with the RAF in fighter-bomber, night fighter, maritime strike and photo reconnaissance roles. The Mosquito truly was ‘The Wooden Wonder.’

From July 1937 until the outbreak of war in September 1939, the RAF conducted selection courses for pilots in New Zealand. The successful volunteers were offered short course commissions in the RAF and were amongst the very first to carry out Bomber Raids against Germany.

In the early 1940s many young men wanted to be pilots. But prior to this “great adventure,” candidates had to work their way through military bureaucracy before acceptance for initial training. In the first of a series on the path to Bomber Command operations, we follow the paper trail.

The Short Stirling was first of the RAF’s heavy bombers – the four-engined trio of Halifax, Stirling and Lancaster – to enter service. While it had a relatively brief operational career as a bomber, being surpassed by the arrival of the Halifax and Lancaster, Stirlings provided a vital improvement to Bomber Command capability.

The Bristol Blenheim, which was used both as a medium bomber and a fighter in the first two years of the war. RNZAF 489 Sq. also flew Blenheims in Coastal Command, and they were still being used as training aircraft until the end of the war.