TUGWELL, Leonard Ormond
| Service Number: | 416728 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 16 August 1941 |
| Last Rank: | Flight Lieutenant |
| Last Unit: | No. 101 Squadron (RAF) |
| Born: | Broken Hill, New South Wales, Australia , 24 June 1918 |
| Home Town: | Victor Harbor, Fleurieu Peninsula, South Australia |
| Schooling: | Victor Harbor Primary School, Victor Harbor High School, South Australia |
| Occupation: | South Australian Police Officer |
| Died: | Flying Battle, Germany, 13 August 1944, aged 26 years |
| Cemetery: |
Hanover War Cemetery |
| Memorials: | Adelaide WW2 Wall of Remembrance, Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, International Bomber Command Centre Memorial, Thebarton S.A. Police Roll of Honor Supreme Sacrifice, Victor Harbor Newland Memorial Congregational Church Memorial Window |
World War 2 Service
| 16 Aug 1941: | Enlisted Royal Australian Air Force, Aircraftman 2 (WW2), 416728, Adelaide, SA | |
|---|---|---|
| 16 Aug 1941: | Enlisted Royal Australian Air Force, Flight Lieutenant, 416728 | |
| 17 Aug 1941: | Involvement Royal Australian Air Force, Sergeant, 416728, Aircrew Training Units, Empire Air Training Scheme, Basic Training Mt Brecon Victor Harbor Service Flying Training School Mallala Advanced Flying Training UK Operational Training Unit Training UK | |
| 15 Nov 1943: | Involvement Royal Australian Air Force, Flying Officer, 416728, No. 101 Squadron (RAF), Air War NW Europe 1939-45, Joined No. 101 Squadron from Heavy Conversion Training | |
| 13 Aug 1944: | Involvement Royal Australian Air Force, Flight Lieutenant, 416728, No. 101 Squadron (RAF), Air War NW Europe 1939-45, Three aircraft and crews from No. 101 Squadron lost on this raid. |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Steve Larkins
Flight Lieutenant Leonard Ormond TUGWELL RAAF (1918-1944)
Leonard Ormond TUGWELL was born in Broken Hill, the only son of his parents,
The family later moved to Victor Harbor and Leonard went to school at Victor Harbor Primary and High Schools.
He joined the South Australian Police force on 1 July 1937, graduating as a Constable in June 1939 and from then until November 1940, he was stationed at Port Adelaide Police Station.
He was then posted to Barmera in SA's Riverland region on the Murray River, where on 9th August 1941, he married Dorothy Jan Davis. She was later to bear twins, although Leonard was never to see them.
In the same month he enlisted in the RAAF and undertook basic training at Mount Brecon in Victor Harbor, and later No. 6 Service Flying School at Mallala north of Adelaide.
Leonard graduated as a pilot in April 1942, and was now headed for continuation training overseas, embarking in May 1942 from Sydney bound for Canada disembarking on 8 July 1942. By November 1943, he had completed each of the stages of advanced flying training through conversion training and was posted to No. 101 Squadron RAF. His crew, formed in the final stages of training, were mainly Australians although as in most cases the Flight Engineers were RAF as was the 'Special Duties' Airborne Electronic Warfare (EW) operators attached in No. 101 Squadron.
Leonard and his crew flew on operations until a fateful night on 13 August 1944.
They were lost in Lancaster Mk I DV292 'SR-O' piloted by FLTLT Leonard Tugwell RAAF. Believed to have been shot down by Oberleutnant Arnold Brinkmann.
The raid on Braunschweig Lower Saxony, Germany, was to determine if Bombers could attack without having the targets marked by Pathfinder aircraft, but rather using the new HS-2 ground mapping radar. 379 aircraft were involved and 27 (17 Lancasters and 10 Halifaxes) or 7.1% of the raiders were lost. Three 101 Squadron aircraft were lost on this mission and another on another target.
The 'experiment' was a failure and the cost was high - 27 aircraft in total and 125 aircrew killed. Most of the crew of one of the 101 Squadron aircraft survived as PW, but all in 'SR-O' perished.
101 Squadron was an Airborne Electronic Warfare unit and its 'ABC' codenamed ‘Airborne Cigar’ - jamming and radio interception equipment was ‘active’, ie transmitting, meaning it could be detected by German night fighters, attracting disproportionately greater attention than their main bomber force colleagues. Accordingly, 101 Squadron suffered the highest casualties of the RAF Bomber Command Squadrons.
Compiled by Steve Larkins 14 Apr 2019
Sources:
Crew identified by examining VWM records for 101 squadron losses on this day (13 Aug 1944)
SA Police Museum research (Leonard Tugwell), and
Aircrew Remembered website http://aircrewremembered.com/atyeo-gene.html (addresses the two other 101 Sqn Lancaster's lost on this raid).
Click images to start slideshow.