We have recently been working with the logbook, prisoner of war log, and other papers of John Henry O’Neill, a bomb aimer with 405 Squadron, who was shot down on 3 June 1944. There is a great deal of interest in these papers, but one small item caught my eye today. Tucked into the prisoner of war log is a yellowing newspaper clipping, describing the end of the last Lancaster on active duty on 20 October 1956. Also tucked into the logbook is the card of the Lancaster included on this post. Clearly, the aircraft was of great significance to John O’Neill. There is also a drawing of a Lancaster in his prisoner of war log.
