At the end of April 1942 the squadron was transferred from
Bomber Command to Coastal Command in to undertake maritime patrols. It moved to
RAF Aldergrove in Northern Ireland on 28 April and began maritime patrol
training on 1 May. The squadron was made part of No. 19 Group RAF, moved to RAF
Talbenny in Wales on 12 June and undertook its first anti-submarine patrol on
30 June. Its Wellingtons lacked air to surface vessel (ASV) radar, but despite
this between June 1942 and April 1943 the squadron achieved the highest success
rate of any Coastal Command squadron.
Throughout July and August the squadron’s Wellingtons
remained in Bomber Command’s Temperate Land Scheme camouflage: dark green and
dark earth above, and black below. This was unsuitable for maritime patrols,
but not until September 1942 were the aircraft repainted in Coastal Command’s
Temperate Sea Scheme: dark slate grey and extra dark sea grey above, and white
below.
In April 1943 the squadron was partly re-equipped with five
Wellington Mark X aircraft. This could carry two torpedoes or 3,999 lb (1,814
kg) of bombs, but it was primarily a Bomber Command variant, not designed for
maritime patrol work. Air Vice-Marshal Karel Janoušek, Inspector-General of the
Czechoslovak Air Force, eventually convinced the UK Air Ministry to re-equip
the squadron with Consolidated Liberator heavy bombers, as these had radar and
a longer range, both of which made them more suitable for maritime patrols.
Retraining flights began on 25 May and continued until August.
Towards the end of May 1943 squadron personnel began to move
to Beaulieu in Hampshire, where the unit would begin its work-up on Liberators.
Coastal Command had set up a training unit at Beaulieu (No. 1 Operational
Training Unit) under the command of Sqn/Ldr Everest, to convert 311 Squadron
onto the new aircraft. Both June and July were wholly taken up with conversion
to the Liberator, thus no operational sorties were carried out. The Operational
Training Unit had a number of Liberator Mk. III/IIIAs at its disposal; FK219
`9′, FK220 `3′, LV339 `4′, LV343 `12′, LV344 `8′ and LV342 `5’and they were
later joined by two more Lib’ Mk. IIIs, FK215 and FK224 together with a
Liberator Mk. V FL971 `7′ (Once the initial training of 311 Squadron had been
completed the training unit moved to Aldergrove in September and eventually
merged with 1674 Heavy Conversion Unit. Aircrew from the squadron were still
undertaking training into at least October at Aldergrove using Liberators such
as LV344 `8′. During the conversion period at Beaulieu, AVM Janousek paid a
visit to observe the unit’s progress and the unit on parade he presented the
CBE to Gp/Cpt Kubita. Life for the aircrews became a succession of training and
operational exercises with rockets and bombs. Initially there were problems
with the availability of aircraft, but by the end of July Liberators BZ773 `A’,
BZ774 `D’, BZ775 `G’, BZ779 ‘J’, BZ782 `K’ and BZ785 `L’ were all in use. The
additional aircraft allowed the training to be intensified, with special
exercises being undertaken covering, familiarisation flying, navigation,
bombing practice, air-to-air and air-to-sea firing, and with lectures and
demonstrations being delivered if the weather was unfit for flying.
The month of August was to prove hugely significant for the
squadron and it began on a proud and confident note. The unit hosted a visit
from a number of high ranking individuals, who attended the celebrations on the
4th of the month, commemorating the third anniversary of the squadron’s
foundation. The President Dr Beneš; the Minister of National Defence General
Sergej Ingr; The Minister for Foreign Affairs Jan Masaryk; The Czechoslovak
Liaison Officer at Coastal Command Gp/Cpt Kubita all attended together with the
AOC Coastal Command AM Slessor and the AOC 19 Gp Coastal Command, AVM Bromet.
The squadron paraded and a memorable time was had by all. By the middle of the
month the squadron was deemed ready to resume operational status and the first
anti-submarine sweep was organised. This took place on the 21st and involved
the two crews of the Commanding Officer, Wg/Cdr Jindřich Breitcetl and Sqn/Ldr
Václav Korda. Unfortunately the start of the new phase was to be marred,
Breitcetl’s Liberator failed to return from the sweep. At the time the reason
for the disappearance of Liberator BZ780 ‘O’ was not known, but it was thought
to have been lost in combat with enemy long range fighters over the Bay of
Biscay. German records appear to indicate that the Liberator was shot down by a
group of Me.IIO fighters from 4ZG1 about 120 miles north west of Brest at
approximately 1820 hours. Fw. Lothar Uhlig carried out two attacks on the Lib’
and was apparently credited with the victory. A second Me.IIO (No.6406 SG+GN)
from the unit failed to return to base and it is thought that it may have been
shot down by the Liberator’s gunners. The German airmen Uffz Georg Planer and
Uffz Horst Hofman are listed as missing on this date. Amongst the crew of BZ780
was Air Gunner W/O Vilém Jakš , a pre-war boxer of international repute. The
others listed as missing were second pilot Flt/Lt František Fencl, navigator
P/O Eduard Pavelka, gunners P/O Emilián Mrázek, F/Sgt Josef Halada, Sgt Josef
Felkl and wireless operator Sgt Michal Pizur.
This tragic event was not allowed to affect the unit’s
routine and Sqn/Ldr Vladimír Nedvěd (who would shortly be appointed as the
squadron’s next commanding officer) took off with F/O Karel Schoř and his crew
in Liberator BZ779 ‘J’ at ten minutes after six the next morning, to carry out
a morale boosting patrol. It was the aircraft’s first operational patrol.
During the sweep a submerging U-Boat was sighted, but the Liberator was not in
a position to attack before the submarine disappeared. The aircraft returned to
Beaulieu later in the day having carried out a patrol of eleven hours and
twenty minutes duration. Further tragedies were in store before the end of the
month, almost certainly due in no small measure to lack of familiarity with the
new aircraft. On the 29th F/O Adolf Musálek perished with his crew when
Liberator BZ775 ‘G’ failed to gain height, struck trees and crashed on take-off
for an operational patrol. The subsequent investigation came to the conclusion
that insufficient runway had been used before the pilot attempted to get
airborne with the fully loaded aircraft. The Liberator burst into flames on
impacting with the ground and all eight crew members died in the inferno (pilot
F/O Adolf Musálek, second pilot Sgt Stanislav Jelínek, navigator Flt/Lt Bruno
Babš and wireless operator/gunners Sgt Eduard Blaháček, Sgt Hanuš Polak and Sgt
Jiří Rubín together with gunners F/O Miroslav Čtvrtlík and Sgt Václav Blahna).
On the 29th of August F/O Metoděj Šebela and his crew, had to divert to
Gibraltar following engine trouble while on patrol in Liberator BZ779 ‘J’. They
were forced to throw surplus equipment overboard to rid themselves of
unnecessary weight, managing to reach Gibraltar with only 70 gallons of fuel
remaining. The Lutwaffe were again making their presence felt on the 30th of
August, when P/O Josef Stach and his crew in Liberator FL948 ‘M’ were attacked
at 1100 hours by a Ju.88 in position 45.28N 08.32W. The Ju.88 opened fire from
500 yards and closed on the Liberator. In all the Liberator was hit some twenty
times and the gunners became involved in a protracted duel with the fighter.
Their gunnery was of the highest standard and the engines of the Ju.88 were set
on fire and it crashed into the sea at 45.48N 09.32W. During the fight the
mid-upper gunner (Sgt František Benedikt) had fired 750 rounds and the rear
gunner (Sgt František Skalík) 600 rounds. During the fifteen minute combat one
of the beam gunners Sgt Andrej Šimek (it was his first operational flight) was
killed, although the rest of the crew were unharmed. The Ju.88 was probably
Ju.88C-6 No.750399 (F8+FX) of 13/KG40 crewed by Uffz E Itzegehl, Uffz U Lentz
and Gefr H Hobusch, all of whom are recorded as missing. Later on the same day,
Flt/Lt Emil Palichleb’s Liberator BZ785 ‘L’ crashed and burst into flames,
causing the death of all on board (Flt/Lt Emil Palichleb, Sgt Josef Bittner,
Sgt Zdeněk Řezáč, Sgt Theodor Schwarz and Sgt Emil Szeliga). The aircraft
stalled off a steep turn close to the base during a practice evasion flight and
crashed at 1542 hours. It spun into the ground from a height of around 1,000
feet and came to earth at Dilton Copse, near Brockenhurst. It was thought that
the aircraft had exceeded the normal all up weight laid down by flight
limitations and that this together with poor handling had contributed to the
crash. By the end of the month the squadron had carried out ten operations, 21
sorties and covered 31,000 nautical miles in some 200 hours of operational
flying.
Life throughout September was fairly quiet, although a
number of fighter affiliation exercises were conducted with 310 (Czech)
Squadron Spitfires, which was based at nearby Ibsley. A parade was held on the
15th at which the CO Wg/Cdr Nedvěd was decorated with the DFC by the AOC 19
Group. Wg/Cdr Nedvěd had some additional excitement the next day (the 16th). He
and his crew were on patrol from early morning having taken off at 0653 hours
in Liberator BZ779 ‘J’, when they sighted a U-Boat. Unfortunately they were
unable to get into an attacking position before the submarine dived to safety.
The aircraft returned to base after a patrol lasting ten hours and forty three
minutes. Things got a good deal ‘hotter’ on the 27th September when P/O Jan
Irving in newly delivered Liberator BZ786 ‘G’, attacked an unidentified U-Boat
shortly before 1115 hours. The submarine appeared to have escaped and no
indications of damage were seen. Irving made sure that a sea marker was dropped
at the scene. Some time later at 1520 hours, a periscope was sighted at
position 49.30N 09.45W and again Irving went into the attack. On this occasion
rocket projectiles were fired (believed to be the first time they had been used
by an aircraft of the squadron on a submarine. BZ786 had external rocket rails
fitted to the forward fuselage, carrying eight 60lb rockets with armour
piercing warheads). Three to four minutes after the attack oil began to rise to
the surface, spreading rapidly along the submarine’s track. After ten minutes
of circling the Liberator had reached its ‘prudent limit of endurance’ (PLE)
and the captain decided to head for home. At that time the oil patch had ceased
to move forward, but was still spreading. All the indications were that the
U-Boat was either sunk or severely damaged. At the end of the month the
squadron had accomplished 26 operations with 54 sorties and had covered
approximately 87,000 nautical miles in 560 hours of operational flying.
The Liberator’s ability to defend itself was severely tested
on at least two occasions in October 1943. F/Sgt Josef Kuhn was at the controls
of Liberator BZ779 ‘J’, when the aircraft was attacked by four Ju.88s in
position 47.28N 10.17W. The enemy fighters were first sighted at a distance of
three miles and they changed formation into ‘line astern’ in readiness to carry
out a series of attacks on the Liberator. The first of the Junkers opened fire
from a distance of 1,000 yards and together with the others closed in on the
Lib’. Kuhn continually corkscrewed the aircraft to present as small and as
difficult a target as possible to his attackers. The gunners wreathed in
cordite fumes returned fire at every possible opportunity. The aircraft
suffered considerable damage; the radar was put out of action and fuel and
hydraulic tanks were holed and leaking. Several of the crew were wounded; Sgt
Alois Matýsek, the radar operator, had splinter wounds in his leg and shoulder;
F/Sgt František Veverka, one of the gunners, had splinter wounds in his leg and
face (he had been wounded firstly when manning the rear turret and had moved to
the starboard beam gun where he was wounded for the second time). Regardless of
his injuries he continued to engage the enemy fighters throughout. One of the
enemy fighters was claimed as damaged, probably shot down. The aircraft in
question was probably JU.88C-6 No.750434 of KG40, which was listed as missing.
The missing crew members were Oblt G Christner, Few E Leubner and Uffz A
Knefel. After the attack Kuhn managed to nurse the Liberator back to the
airfield at St. Eval for a ‘no flaps’ landing on the nose wheel and one main
wheel. Both Kuhn and Veverka were to later receive the DFM in recognition of
the courage and skill that they displayed during the incident. On the 23rd it
was the turn of P/O Josef Stach to come under attack this time from seven enemy
fighters! Liberator BZ774 ‘D’ was bounced at 1315 hours in position 45.00N
10.08W. The gunners put up a spirited defence and the German airmen soon
realised that they had picked on a rather tough adversary. During the 45 minute
combat that followed, one of the enemy fighters was claimed as shot down and
two damaged. Stach manoeuvred the Liberator masterfully and despite the efforts
of the enemy fighters the aircraft was not damaged and none of the crew were
injured. An exhausted and thankful crew reached base after a flight lasting
over 12 hours. This was another classic instance that served to emphasise the
squadron’s motto ‘Never Regard their Numbers’. No matter what the odds the
airmen of 311 were always ready to give battle. Stach was later to receive the
DFC in recognition of his piloting skills. Despite the outside interference,
the squadron carried out 23 operations and 54 sorties in 550 hours and covered
86,000 nautical miles during the month.
On 26 May 1943 the squadron moved to RAF Beaulieu in
Hampshire. On 4 August it celebrated its third anniversary. Guests again
included President Beneš and Foreign Minister Masaryk. They included also
General Sergej Ingr, who had succeeded General Hasal-Nižborský as Defence
Minister, and the head of Coastal Command, Air Marshal John Slessor.
On 21 August 1943 the squadron began maritime patrols with
Consolidated Liberator GR Mk V aircraft and continued anti-submarine work, but
now over the Bay of Biscay. On 10 November Liberator BZ774/D, led by Flt Sgt
Otto Žanta, attacked German submarine U-966 with rocket projectiles (RP’s) off
the Galician coast. The submarine ran aground and her crew abandoned her.
On 27 December 1943 Liberator BZ796/H, led by Plt Off
Oldřich Doležal, attacked the German blockade runner Alsterufer in the Bay of Biscay.
Doležal’s crew set the cargo ship on fire with five RP’s and a 500 lb (230 kg)
bomb, and she sank the next day.
In February 1944 the squadron was re-equipped with nine
Liberator C Mk VI aircraft.[5][28] On 23 February it moved to RAF Predannack in
Cornwall. On 24 June Liberator FL961/O led by Fg Off Jan Vella, along with the
Tribal-class destroyers HMS Eskimo and HMCS Haida, attacked and sank U-971 just
west of the English Channel.
On 7 August 1944 the squadron transferred to RAF Tain in
Scotland[31] and its area of operations changed from the Bay of Biscay and
Western Approaches to the North Sea. In September its rôle was changed from day
to night anti-submarine patrols. On 27 October Fleet Air Arm aircraft from HMS
Implacable damaged U-1060, forcing her to run aground on the coast of
German-occupied Norway. Two days later two 311 Squadron Liberators, FL949/Y led
by Fg Off Josef Pavelka and BZ723/H led by Sqn Ldr Alois Šedivý, damaged the
grounded submarine with salvos of RP’s. Later two Halifax heavy bombers of No.
502 Squadron RAF finished off U-1060 with depth charges.
In February 1945 the squadron was re-equipped, again with
Liberator C Mk VI aircraft but now equipped with anti-submarine Leigh Lights.
In March the entire squadron took part in the “Chilli-II” and
“Chilli-III” raids on German submarine training areas in the Baltic.
Grave of Sgt Rudolf Scholz in St John’s parish churchyard,
Stoke Row, Oxfordshire. Sholz was the flight engineer of Liberator IV EV995
when it crashed on the beach at Tain, Ross-shire, Scotland, on 10 April 1945.
Six of its crew were killed and three injured.
311 Squadron was with Coastal Command for 38 months, in
which time it flew 2,111 sorties. By the end of the war 247 of its men had been
killed, either in combat or in accidents. 33 of its members were released from
German prisoner-of-war camps. One PoW, Plt Off Arnošt Valenta, was murdered by
the Gestapo in March 1944 for taking part in the Great Escape from Stalag Luft
III.
