550 Squadron Photos


Wing Commander Bryan "Dingle" Bell


Photos

Click image Wing Commander Bryan "Dingle" Bell
PoW (FTR 22 Feb 45)

Picture courtesy of Gordon Bell
Click image Wing Commander Bryan "Dingle" Bell

PoW picture from German archive: taken when Wing Commander Bell was captured after going on the run following the crash.
If you want to find out how Wing Commander Bell's family acquired this picture then click here

Picture courtesy of Gordon Bell

PoW Documentation

Copies of documents associated with Wing Commander Bell's capture are shown below (again kindly made available by Gordon Bell):

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PoW Register Form
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Release from HQ staff
(rear of PoW Register Form)
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PoW Pass
 In the this photograph you may notice Wing Commander Bell is declared to be an American flyer. One possible reason for this, discussed with his family, is that the mistake occured as he was second-in-command to, and was accommodated with, Col. Pop Goode the American senior officer.
Wing Commander Bell was acting as a laison between Goode and Group Captain Willets the senior Allied officer who signed him off the HQ staff on the back of the POW register form.
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Notebook Cover
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HQ Form

Extracts from Notes

new17/11/2009

Below are extracts from notes made by Wing Commander Bell after the war of his experiences joining up, training, life in the newly formed 550 Squadron in North Killingholme, flying on ops, and that critical last mission which resulted in the loss of the aircraft, some of his crew and life in a PoW camp until liberation. Once again all kindly made available by Gordon Bell.


Training and Early Ops Wing Cmdr Bell's crew, and notes about training and his early ops, etc
The "Pommie Mascot" The "Pommie Mascot"
New Years Eve 1944 Emergency runway clearance
550 Squadron Commanding Officer at 550 Squadron
Last Mission Details about the last mission, attacked by a night-fighter, the bale-out and the attempt to avoid capture.
PoW Camp Life Senior British officer at Stalag Luft VIIA
Stalag Luft VIIA Stalag Luft VIIA in Bavaria housing captured military personnel of nearly every Allied nationality
Complete document The full set of notes in PDF format