LEST WE FORGET
Flying Officer Vivian Clive ELY
Service No: 426221
Born: Caboolture QLD, 22 July 1921
Enlisted in the RAAF: 23 May 1942
Unit: No. 462 Squadron, RAF Foulsham, Norfolk
Died: Air Operations: (No. 462 Squadron Halifax aircraft MZ461), Germany, 24 February 1945, Aged 23 Years
Buried: Unrecovered
CWGC Additional Information: Son of Edward and Annie Ely; husband of Olga Margaret Ely, of Ascot, Queensland, Australia.
Roll of Honour: Tewantin QLD
Remembered: Panel 283, Runnymede Memorial, Surrey UK
Remembered: Panel 109, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
No. 462 Squadron flew 155 sorties on 15 nights and one day during February and 83 sorties on 13 nights during the first three weeks of March. The combined Window-dropping and bombing raids during February were all in the Ruhr and Rhineland, mainly as decoys from the true target chosen that night but sometimes purely to confuse enemy raid reporting systems when no actual attack was contemplated. By its very nature this “coat-trailing” was hazardous, but crews intruded and withdrew safely with conspicuous success until 24th-25th February when four out of ten Halifaxes sent to the Ruhr failed to return.
Extract from Herington, J. (John) (406545) Air War Over Europe 1944-1945, Australian War Memorial, Canberra, 1963 – Page 432
Halifax MZ461 took off from RAF Foulsham at 1705 hours on the night of 24/25th February 1945 to carry out a spoof and bombing raid over the Ruhr area. Ten aircraft from the Squadron took part in the raid and four of these including MZ461 failed to return. Captured documents established that the aircraft was shot down at 1950 hours on 24/2/45 at Anrater near Krefeld, Germany.
The crew members of MZ461 were:
Flight Sergeant Dennis James Critchley (1684278) (RAFVR) (Navigator)
Flying Officer Vivian Clive Ely (426221) (Pilot)
Flying Officer John Hubert Hering (419001) (Wireless Air Gunner)
Sergeant Rodney Hetherington (1826680) (RAFVR) (Flight Engineer)
Flying Officer Peter Millhouse (153804) (RAFVR) (Bomb Aimer)
Sergeant Matthew Ogilvie (1595990) (RAFVR) (Mid Upper Gunner)
Sergeant Geoffrey Robinson (1595325) (RAFVR) (Rear Gunner)
Sergeant George Arthur Edgar Sanday (1896933) (RAFVR) (Special Duties)
No. 462 Squadron lost Halifax MZ447 (Flight Lieutenant Allan John Rate (423892) (Pilot)) on 24 February 1945.
No. 462 Squadron lost Halifax PN429 (Flight Sergeant Patrick John Paul Carlon (432936) (Mid Upper Gunner)) on 24 February 1945.
No. 462 Squadron lost Halifax MZ448 (Flight Lieutenant Frederick Harold Ridgewell (149967) (RAFVR) (Pilot)) on 24 February 1945
References:
Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour On-Line Records (RAAF Casualty Information compiled by Alan Storr (409804))
Chorley W R Royal Air Force Bomber Command Losses of the Second World War – Volume 6 Aircraft and Aircrew Losses 1945, Midland Counties Publications, 1998
Commonwealth War Graves Commission On-Line Records
Department of Veteran’s Affairs On-Line WWII Nominal Roll
National Archives of Australia On-Line Record A705, 166/11/243