Pilot Officer Alan Edward Potter
From Pilmor North Yorkshire Alan Potter volunteered for aircrew on his eighteenth birthday, having been selected he was finally sent to the aircrew selection centre at Cardington where he was offered the position of wireless operator. After being kitted out at Padgate he started his training at Blackpool learning morse code, which he found easy, being a member of the Radio Society of Great Britain. folowing this it was on to No.2 Radio School at RAF Yatesbury. Following a short interlude with 4 Commando at Troon he went back to yatesbury and eventually on to the air gunners course at RAF Evanton. the next stop was 29 Operational Training Unit at RAF North Luffenham. Here he crewed up with his first crew of five members. His skipper then was Flying Officer John Williams, who he flew with for all his operations. From there it was on to 1661 conversion unit at RAF Winthorpe, where they were made up to a seven man crew.
On 29 August 1943 he was posted to 61 squadron at RAF Syerston. It was from here he flew his first 12 operations. The squadron then moved to RAF Skellingthorpe where he flew a further 9 operations.
EE176 Mickey the Moocher Alan Potters regular aircraft
RAF Syerston
2/3 September 1943 DV232 Gardening-Nectarine
5/6 September 1943 JB137 Mannheim
6/7 September 1943 JB137 Munich
22/23 September 1943 W4357 Hannover
23/24 September 1943 ED176 Mannheim
26/27 September 1943 ED176 Hannover
3/4 October 1943 JB138 Kassel
4/5 October 1943 EE176 Frankfurt
8/9 October 1943 EE176 Hannover
18/19 October 1943 EE176 Hannover
20/21 October 1943 EE176 Leipzig
22/23 October 1943 EE176 Kassel
RAF Skellingthorpe
23/24 November 1943 EE176 Berlin
26/27 November 1943 EE176 Berlin
2/3 December 1943 EE176 Berlin
29/30 December 1943 EE176 Berlin
1/2 January 1944 EE176 Berlin
2/3 January 1944 EE176 Berlin
20/21 January 1944 EE176 Berlin
28/29 January 1944 EE176 Berlin
15/16 February 1944 EE176 Berlin
On 15th February 1944 he was posted to 617 squadron.
Having completed their tour of 30 operations, the crew decided to carry on operations with 617 squadron to complete two tours.
B ― for Beelzebub after a certain well known Mirror cartoon character Beelzebub Jones , a cowboy . The sketch for the paint job on the aircraft was gladly donated to the crew by the Mirror cartoonist Hugh McClelland
The story of Alan Potter in his own words of his time with 61 Squadron and 617 Squadron. ( Click on the link to download)
WARTIME.pdf
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