Tribute to 'the bravest man we never knew'.

Seventy years on from the 'Battle of Berlin' and acts of selfless heroism continue to come to light.

Sincere condolences to the family and friends of Donald Charles Bell, ex- flight engineer who served with 625 and 103 Squadrons, RAF Bomber Command in the Second World War, and passed away in Canada at the end of December last.

I hope the family won't mind me referring to Donald's obituary notice, which includes a tribute to 'the bravest man we never knew – Frank Law '.

Sgt D C Bell joined Jim Ives's crew at 1662 Conversion Unit, RAF Blyton and went forward with them to RAF Kelstern where the crew was soon split up and certain personnel dispersed here and there to other 1Group squadrons. Donald Bell, a married man with a young son and another on the way, was posted to 103 Squadron where he flew initially with P/O Len Young between 'Black Thursday', December 16^th/17^th 1943 and 20^th/21^st January 1944 when Bell joined a pilot who had lost his own crew, casualties while filling in as 'spare bods' in other crews.

His new skipper was Glaswegian Frank Law who had graduated as an 'Arnold Scheme' sergeant pilot of class 42G in August 1942. Sgt Law's and Ives's paths crossed several times during continuation training in the UK, flying exercises together on more than one occasion. Jim's B/A Geoff Yates remembered Law as being of slight build, dark-haired, very serious and 'not given to smiles', but it seems that Law and Ives got on well.

F/Sgt Law's 'assembled' crew settled into ops – this was at the height of the 'Battle of Berlin'.

Navigator Sgt Ken Flowers joined F/Sgt Frank Law for a consistent run of operations from 5^th January 1944:-

5^th/6th January in JB745 – Stettin

20^th/21^st January in JB278 – Berlin

21^st/22^nd January in JB278 – Magdeburg

27^th/28^th January in ND408 – Berlin

28^th/29^th January ND408 – Berlin

30^th/31^st January in ND417 – Berlin

15^th/16^th February in ND408 – Berlin

19^th/20^th February in ND408 – Leipzig.

On 19^th February 1944 P/O Frank Law's crew appeared on the Battle Order for an operation against Leipzig. The crew of Lancaster ND408 PM-T was:-

W/O F Law – pilot, from Glasgow

Sgt Donald Charles Bell - flight engineer, from Laleham, Surrey

F/Sgt Kenneth William Flowers – navigator, from Forest Gate, Essex

Sgt Cecil John Daniel Baldwin - air bomber, from Shoreditch, London

Sgt Ronald Sydney Johnstone - wireless operator/air gunner, from Newcastle-under-Lyne, Staffs

Sgt Albert Henry Daines - mid-upper gunner, from Sunbury-on-Thames

Sgt Alfred John Bristow - rear gunner, from Bethnal Green, London.

ND408 took off from Elsham Wolds at 23.25 and was one of a bomber force of 823 aircraft detailed from which 78 aircraft were lost.

Initial reports from the German Authorities [Totenliste 204] coming to 103 Squadron via the International Red Cross Committee outlined that a squadron aircraft had been shot down on 20^th February 1944. Three members of the crew were named, together with two unknowns who had been buried on 21^st February 1944 in the Cemetery at Atteln, a village 9 miles SSE of Paderborn. Two other members of the crew had been taken prisoner.

In December 1947, nearly four years after the event, investigations by No. 24 Section, No. 4 Missing Research and Enquiry Unit RAF (Germany) reported the circumstances of the loss of ND408 - that at approximately 06.00hrs on 20^th February 1944 a RAF Lancaster crashed in a field just south of the village of Atteln. The aircraft had apparently been hit by flak which had damaged its tail and adversely affected the steering. The aircraft had not burnt and the bodies of five airmen were recovered. Two of the crew had parachuted safely from the aircraft and had been taken prisoner. Those who died were buried in the village cemetery.

A different version of the loss has now come to light from Donald Bell's family, it transpires that four members of the crew had been killed instantly when ND408 was hit by fire from a night-fighter on the way in to the target. 'The Lancaster limped on (on) fire and barely under control. The bravest man we will never know – Frank Law, a Scot, ordered any surviving crew to “get out” as he fought and held the crippled Lancaster level so Don and the bomb-aimer (Cecil Baldwin) could parachute to safety, then he rode it into the ground.'

A survivor's account of what happened.

As the quotation goes - 'Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.'

LAC (later P/O) Frank Law -