Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

‘At about this time, as well, two very surprised members of No. 105 Squadron, Flight Lieutenant Parry and Pilot Officer Robson, were told to report for an operational sortie - in lounge suits. Pilot and navigator were even more amazed when they saw their aircraft. The R.A.F. roundels had vanished, and it no longer carried any numbering or lettering. Crew and aircraft were as incognito as the R.A.F. could make them. Their object: to run the gauntlet of enemy fighters and deliver a diplomatic bag to the British Embassy in Stockholm.

Parry and Robson reached Stockholm just a few minutes before a German Ju. 52 arrived with a load of Goebbels’ propaganda staff. That night the R.A.F. officers enjoyed the wonderful food and the street lighting of the neutral capital. Then, after their night off from rations and the blackout, they flew home with inward Foreign Office despatches and changed back into uniform.’

Mosquito - The Wooden Wonder, by Edward Bishop, refers.

A particularly fine Second World War D.F.C. and Bar group of five awarded to Squadron Leader V. G. “Robby” Robson, Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve, a long served Navigator in Blenheims and Mosquitos and a veteran of over 70 operational sorties, among them the famous daylight low-level strike on Gestapo H.Q. Oslo in September 1942; so, too, in the same year, equally memorable outings to Sweden on a top secret mission and the famous daylight strike on the Phillips Radio Works at Eindhoven - a fine operational record enhanced by no less than 10 trips to Berlin, including the first attempted daylight raid on the “Big City” when his aircraft was shot up by 109s: his pilot, “George” Parry compared him to a homing pigeon, ‘for no matter how bad the weather, he always pinpointed exactly’

Distinguished Flying Cross, G.VI.R., with Second Award Bar, the reverse of the Cross officially dated ‘1942’ and the Bar ‘1943’; 1939-45 Star; Air Crew Europe Star; Defence and War Medals 1939-45, mounted as worn, contact marks, generally very fine (5) £4000-5000

D.F.C. London Gazette 22 September 1942. The original recommendation states:

‘On 25 August 1942, Pilot Officer Robson was the navigator of an aircraft detailed to attack Knapsack (Cologne) power station in daylight. The weather conditions at the time were almost clear sky, good visibility though some ground haze.

The whole operation was carried out at low-level and demanded the highest standard of navigation and precise map reading. In spite of ground haze and the accumulation of insects on the windscreen, Pilot Officer Robson navigated the aircraft exactly as planned with the result that the attack was delivered with great success at a precise time.

Pilot Officer Robson carried out 35 operational sorties during his first tour of operations. In this, his second tour, he has completed 10 sorties in clear weather by day, all involving deep penetration into enemy territory and good navigation. At all times he has displayed great keenness and initiative.’

Bar to D.F.C. London Gazette 9 February 1943. The original recommendation states:

‘In September 1942 this officer participated as navigator of the leading aircraft in the successful attack on Gestapo Headquarters in Oslo. This operation, which demanded most accurate navigation, careful planning and map reading was accomplished with skill and resource by Flying Officer Robson. After bombing the target, he directed his pilot through a successful evasion action when the aircraft was attacked by three enemy fighters. This officer had displayed a high order of gallantry and devotion to duty.’

Victor George “Robby” Robson was born in Derby in 1912, where he attended St. James’s Church School and excelled at sports - he played football for the Derby Boys and won the Derbyshire 100 yards sprint championship. After leaving school he was employed at British Celanese Ltd. but, on the eve of hostilities, he enlisted in the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve.

First operational tour - Blenheims - No. 110 Squadron

Having then qualified as a Navigator and attended an Operational Training Unit, he was posted to No. 110 Squadron, a Blenheim unit operating out of Wattisham, Suffolk, in August 1940. Teaming-up with Pilot Officer D. A. G. “George” Parry’s crew, he flew his first sorties - against Emden and targets in France - that month. It is said Parry was always known as “George” because like the autopilot of the same name, he always came home.

In September Robson completed nine further sorties to France, attacking targets in Boulogne, Calais and Dunkirk, four similar operations taking place in October, including a strike on Amiens. Having then carried out two further sorties to France in early November, 105’s operational agenda turned to Germany, Robson participating in raids on Cologne, Dortmund and Hamburg before the month’s end. In fact, as it transpired, all of his subsequent sorties with 105 Squadron were to Germany, including two further trips to Cologne, two to Bremen and two to Wilhelmshaven. Tour expired by March 1941, he was rested.

Second operational tour - Mosquitos - No. 105 Squadron

Robson returned to an operational footing in December 1941, when he joined No. 105 Squadron at Swanton Morley, Norfolk, the first unit to have taken delivery of Mosquitos and shortly to be relocated to Horsham St. Faith. It was commanded by the redoubtable “Hughie” Edwards, V.C., D.F.C.

A period of ‘working up’ having ensued, Robson - still teamed-up with Parry as his pilot - completed his first sortie on 2 June 1942, against Essen. His next outing was a low-level strike against Javel on the 25th, followed by a brace of ‘Met.’ flights in July.

Top secret mission to neutral Sweden - civvies and spies

In early August 1942, Parry and Robson were ordered to carry out a top-secret special operation to neutral Sweden. Parry takes up the story:

‘At the Air Ministry they explained to us what was happening, and then we went to the Foreign Office for their briefing. They said there would be a van coming to pick us up and take us to Liverpool Street. When the van arrived it was filled with about 40 diplomatic sacks with labels clearly marked 'British Embassy, Stockholm’. What security! I got the driver to roll them together to hide the label and ‘Robbie’ got in the back and I sat up front. At Liverpool Street Station I went and saw the stationmaster and persuaded him to give us a first-class compartment all to ourselves and to make sure we were locked in. Then I rang Horsham and asked for a car to meet us at Thorpe Station to take us and the bags to the base. As far as I was aware there were codes and cyphers in the bags.

At Horsham the bags were locked in the H.Q. building overnight. Next morning, 4 August, 'Robbie' and I, wearing our Sidcot flying suit over civilian clothes boarded our grey Mosquito now loaded with about a 1,000lb of baggage roped together in the bomb bay and rear fuselage and prepared to fly to Leuchars for the overwater flight to Sweden. Everyone had been told that we were doing a special test and would be away for 4 hours. One of the ground crew looked at our footware and told me much later he had wondered why we were wearing black civilian shoes.

At Leuchars we rang the Foreign Office for the 'OK'  to take off, but they could not apparently raise the Embassy in Stockholm. I had to get there before dark as we had no radio, IFF, or anything else; they had all been taken out to save weight and make room for the bags. After ringing again and getting no definite answer I finally decided I must take a chance and take off. We set off across the North Sea for Stockholm and arrived over Bromma Airport where I cut in in front of a Luftwaffe Ju. 52! We landed, and so did the Ju. 52. A whole load of Germans came out of the transport and were extremely excited about our Mosquito. We were armed with incendiary devices to set it on fire if necessary, but the Swedes marshalled the Germans into the terminal and locked them in a room. Then the British Embassy staff, tipped-off by the Swedes that we had arrived, drove up and loaded up their cars with the diplomatic bags. A 24-hour guard by men in 'civvies' and armed with concealed revolvers was placed around the aircraft overnight.

We were taken to a large hotel in the middle of Stockholm which overlooked a large lake. We had no money and were not allowed to buy anything but were taken out to dinner at a plush restaurant, where German Embassy staff and spies were pointed out to us by our host. We met a Squadron Leader who had been shot down in 1940 while flying Blenheims in 2 Group and had escaped after being taken prisoner by falling, unnoticed, out of the column he was in while being marched away to captivity and rolling into a ditch. He got as far as Stettin and got aboard a Swedish collier to Stockholm, where he gave himself up. He was an internee but was being looked after by the British Embassy. He wanted to get home. It was a bit tight and he would have to take turns on the oxygen mask, but I told him he could come home with us in the nose of our Mosquito. Next morning I started up one engine and all he had to do was nip in smartly, but the Swedes were not having it and they nabbed him! (He got back a year later). On the way home we flew at 500-600 ft. over the North Sea because of a weather front, and approaching Scotland two Hurricanes came out to intercept us. I had no IFF, so I opened up and left them behind and quickly landed at Leuchars’ (The Men Who Flew the Mosquito, by Martin Bowman, refers).

Nor was this the only notable operation undertaken by Parry and Robson in August, for on the 25th they participated in the low-level strike on the Knapsack power station at Cologne - an operation that culminated in the award of his first D.F.C.

Dawn and dusk raids against Emden and Bielefeld having then been carried out in early September, Parry and Robson were allocated to a raid on Berlin on the 19th - namely the first attempted daylight raid to be mounted on the “Big City”:

’Flight Lieutenant George Parry and Flight Lieutenant Victor Robson in DK 339 were intercepted on two occasions by Fw. 190s but managed to evade them. Parry jettisoned his bombs near Hamburg and turned for home, heading back across the north coast of Germany into Holland. At 1,000 feet just off the Dutch coast, two Bf. 109s attacked, and although one of them scored hits, Parry dropped to sea-level and outran them’ (Mosquito - Bomber/Fighter-Bomber Units 1942-45, by Martin Bowman, refers).

Gestapo H.Q., Oslo

It was about this time that British intelligence learnt from the Norwegian Resistance that Vidkun Quisling, the Nazi appointed Prime Minister, was to attend a parade with his Hirdsmen in Oslo. Owing to morale being at a low-ebb in occupied Norway, it was decided that the R.A.F. should pay a visit to disrupt the parade and attack the Gestapo H.Q. The obvious aircraft to undertake the operation was the Mosquito, capable as it was of low-level precision bombing and of covering the 1,100 mile round trip.

Accordingly, No. 105 Squadron was assigned the trail-blazing mission, and Parry and Robson given the onerous task of leading the raid - with three other aircraft - on the 25th. The raid was to be conducted at heights of between 50-100 feet. Of subsequent events, Parry wrote:

‘We refuelled and bombed-up with four eleven-second delayed-action 500lb. bombs and set off at low-level, fifty feet all the way, to Norway. It was like flying down a long, straight road and we were using dead reckoning throughout. We went through the Skaggerak, made landfall at the southern end of Oslo Fjord and flew up the eastern side.

We flew up to a police radio station perched on a hill and I was told later I hit the flexible forty-five feet radio antenna, although it didn't do any damage to my Mosquito.

We had been briefed that there would be 10/10th cloud at 2,000 feet over Oslo, but it was a lovely day with blue sky. We had also been told there were no fighters to worry about, but the Germans had brought a squadron of Fw. 190s south from Stavanger for a flypast during the parade. They had landed at Fornebu and had only been on the ground a short time when we arrived at 3 p.m. over the centre of Oslo.

A lookout at the southern end of Oslo Fjord reported us and they were scrambled. Two Fw. 190s got into the action. Fortunately, the rest did not get off in time.

Red tracer was going past me. Some of the Fw. 190's shells hit the Royal Palace, although we were blamed for it at the time. I thought it was ground fire during our bomb run and didn't realize he was after me until my No. 2 and No. 3 overtook me. I was concentrating on 'buzzing' the parade and taking a line south-west over the centre of Oslo for the bomb run.

We were travelling at 280-300 mph when I dropped my bombs. The speed the bombs were going meant they more or less followed us. They didn't drop but a few feet. Then they slowed down and hit. It was only after I had dropped my bombs that my navigator noticed a fighter was behind us. I opened up rapidly and shook him off by flying up the valleys at low-level.’

Gun camera footage and photographic reconnaissance swiftly established that the raid had been a complete success. As one Norwegian observer remarked, “German airmen and flak officers are impressed by the precision bombing, which was fantastically cleverly carried out; there are not so many German flags on the houses any longer.’

Parry was swiftly sent to London, where he was interviewed by the B.B.C., this being the first occasion on which the existence of the Mosquito was revealed to the public: ‘The B.B.C. paid me five guineas, which I gave to the R.A.F. Benevolent Fund.’

He was awarded the D.S.O. and Robson a Bar to his D.F.C.

In October, Parry and Robson attacked the Stork diesel works at Hengelo in Holland on two occasions, acting as formation leaders on the second trip on the 16th, and on a low-level strike on Julich on 16 November.

“Operation Oyster”: The Phillips Radio and Valve Works, Eindhoven

On 6 December 1942, Parry and Robson were selected to lead a formation of 105’s Mosquitos in the famous mass raid on the Phillips valve and radio works at Eindhoven. It was a hair-raising trip, once again undertaken in broad daylight. Parry takes up the story:

‘We took off and formed two formations of 10 Mosquitos behind the Bostons and Venturas, but something went wrong with the timing and instead of being 60 miles behind, we caught them. We came in over the Scheldte at 50 ft. and were beginning to wobble a bit flying along at 160 m.p.h., trying to maintain the speed of the leading bombers. We flew through a flock of ducks and one went through my windscreen, split my leather flying helmet, and cut my head. The bird and bits of windscreen fragments hit the armour-plated seat and rebounded into my back. Funny, I didn't feel a thing, but my head went ice-cold. Robbie was cut by flying glass. He thought I was 'out' and grabbed the stick. I recovered and headed inland. Passing Woensdrecht airfield, Fw. 190s were taking off. My No. 2 and I broke away to decoy them away from the Venturas coming in over the coast behind. I went underneath an Fw. 190. He didn't see me.

We caught up with the Bostons and bombed individually. I started a shallow dive on a tall factory building with two gun emplacements on the roof, firing. I released my four 500-pounders and carried on diving until I pulled out at ground-level. We flew out across the town and fields. We were to fly home via Den Helder. I looked at the gaggle of Bostons and Venturas and said to Robbie, “We'll go home our own way!” 'Junior' O'Grady's Mosquito was hit by flak at Den Helder and crashed into the sea. Nine Venturas and four Bostons also failed to return. The Philips works was devastated, essential supplies destroyed and the rail network disrupted’ (The Men Who Flew the Mosquito, by Martin Bowman, refers).

It had been Parry’s and Robson’s 50th sortie and pilot and navigator were grounded.

Third operational tour - Mosquitos - No. 608 Squadron

In August 1944, Robson commenced his third operational tour after joining another Mosquito unit, No. 608 (North Riding) Squadron, at Downham Market, Norfolk. The squadron was part of No. 8 (Path Finder) Group’s Light Night Striking Force.

Most of his ensuing sorties - another 22 of them - were flown with Wing Commanders W. W. G. Scott, D.F.C., or R. C. Alabaster, D.S.O., D.F.C., at the helm. It was an impressive tour, for other than attacking such heavily defended targets as Cologne, Dusseldorf, Essen and Nuremburg, he was assigned to no less than nine sorties against the “Big City”. His final trip was an attack on Munich on 25 April 1945, which trip raised his tally of operational sorties to safely in excess of 70.

Sold with the recipient’s original R.A.F. Observer’s and Air Gunner’s Flying Log Book (Form 1767 type), covering the period October 1939 to May 1945, some of the entries for his time in No. 105 Squadron signed-off by “Hughie” Edwards, V.C. (see example in illustration); the later entries for No. 608 Squadron, as Navigator to Wing Commanders Scott and Alabaster, not signed-off; together with several wartime photographs.