THE SUPERB WW2 1942 D.F.M. GROUP TO A HAMPDEN N.C.O. W/O A/G WHO TOOK PART IN AT LEAST 53 OPERATIONAL SORTIES WITH 44 AND 207 SQUADRONS, SEVERAL BEING OF GREAT NOTE, INCLUDING THE FIRST RAF RAID ON BERLIN, BEING IN ONE OF JUST 29 BOMBERS TO ACTUALLY BOMB THE GERMAN CAPITAL. TAKING PART IN THE ‘BATTLE OF THE BARGES’ IN SEPTEMBER 1940, AN ATTACK ON THE GERMAN BATTLESHIPS GNEISENAU AND SCHARNHORST, HE WAS FORCED TO BAIL OUT DURING A SORTIE TO LORIENT AND ON 7 SEPTEMBER 1941 DURING A SORTIE TO BERLIN HIS AIRCRAFT WAS HELD IN A CONE OF 50 SEARCHLIGHTS ABOVE THE CITY FOR FOUR MINUTES AND PEPPERED WITH MORE THAN 30 FLAK HOLES. FOR WHAT WAS CALLED AN ‘IMPOSSIBLE’ JOURNEY BACK HOME ON JUST ONE ENGINE, HIS PILOT WAS AWARDED THE D.S.O.

DISTINGUISHED FLYING MEDAL, G.VI.R.‘535815. F/SGT. J.E. HALLAM. R.A.F.’, 1939-1945 STAR, AIR CREW EUROPE STAR, DEFENCE AND WAR MEDALS.

D.F.M. London Gazette 23 December 1941. The original recommendation stated:

'This airman has been engaged on operational flying in the role of air gunner since the war began. Since joining his present unit Flight Sergeant Hallam carried out 21 sorties, including targets in Germany and attacks on the enemy cruisers Gneisenau and Scharnhorst. He has at all times shown great enthusiasm and efficiency and has set a fine example.'

Reduced recommendation:

“T/F/Sgt. Hallam has been employed continually on Operational Flying duties since the outbreak of the war and at all times has shown enthusiasm and efficiency in his work and has set a splendid example to his fellows”.

535815 Flight Sergeant John Edwin Hallam was an Air Gunner with 207 Squadron. At the point of his recommendation on 28 October 1941, he had taken part in a total of 53 operational sorties (303 flying hours). 31 of these sorties were with his previous unit.

A newspaper article on the award of his D.F.M. tells how Hallam was born in Hope, Derbyshire in 1915 and in civil life was an electrician. He joined the Royal Air Force in 1936 and served on operational sorties from the start of the war. The first squadron he would serve operational sorties in was 44 Squadron……………….

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Condition VF, with original recommendation. Sold with digital copies of the original DFM recommendation and operational logs for each squadron during Hallam’s service. A really quite outstanding DFM group to an Air Gunner who certainly saw his fair share of aerial action.