Battle of Britain London Monument – P/O S R Gane 
THE BATTLE OF BRITAIN LONDON MONUMENT 
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conflict was so much owed
by so many to so few." 
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Privacy Statement The Airmen’s Stories – P/O S R Gane
Sydney Russell Gane joined the RAF on a short service commission in March 1939. He did his elementary training at 10 E&RFTS Yatesbury and intermediate and advanced training at 5 FTS Sealand. On 6th November 1939 Gane was posted to 248 Squadron at Hendon.
In February 1940 the squadron joined Coastal Command. Flying from Sumburgh in the Shetlands, Gane failed to return from a sortie in Blenheim L9453 over the Norwegian coast on 20th October 1940. Three Blenheims from 248 had been sent out to look for a shot-down German crew in a dinghy, an intercepted radio message indicated that a Luftwaffe floatplane was on its way to pick them up.
Off Ballen Hemnefjord, L9453 was intercepted by two Me109’s from 4./JG77 and shot down. Gane was able to bale out but P/O MD Green and Sgt. NJ Stocks were still aboard when the Blenheim went into the sea.
The two Messerschmitts then machine-gunned Gane while he was descending. His body was recovered by Norwegian civilians and buried nearby at Stamnes Farm. In 1945 he was re-interred at Stavne Cemetery, Trondheim.
Sgt. WJ Garfield, P/O AL Fowle, P/O EH McHardy, P/O SR Gane, P/O HR Sharman, Sgt JH Round
Above image courtesy of Carole, daughter of F/O VA Ricketts of 248 Squadron
There is more information on this incident at: http://ktsorens.tihlde.org/flyvrak/ballen.html
Above cemetery images courtesy of The War Graves Photographic Project
www.twgpp.org
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