Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

A fine Second World War rear-gunner’s D.F.C. group of six awarded to Pilot Officer C. G. Pearse, Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve, a veteran of over 50 operational sorties, many of them with No. 161 Squadron in support of S.O.E. circuits in Occupied Europe
Distinguished Flying Cross, G.VI.R., the reverse officially dated ‘1943’ and the reverse of the upper arm privately inscribed ‘C. G. P.’, in its Royal Mint case of issue; 1939-45 Star; Air Crew Europe Star; Africa Star; Italy Star; Defence and War Medals 1939-45, extremely fine (6) £1800-2200

D.F.C. London Gazette 19 October 1943. The original recommendation states:

‘Pilot Officer Pearse has carried out 12 operational sorties since joining this squadron, all Special Operations between 16 May 1943 to 24 July 1943. He has carried out a total of 38 operational sorties, and has attacked targets in Germany, France and the Western Desert. He has at all times shown great keenness and efficiency and has set a very good example to other members of the Squadron.’

Cyril George Pearse, a native of Ipswich, commenced his aircrew training at R.A.F. Manby in June 1941, qualified as an Air Gunner and was posted to No. 101 Squadron, a Wellington unit operating out of Oakington in the following month.

Completing his first sortie - against Dunkirk - on 27 July, and another against Cherbourg in early August, he was ordered to the Middle East, where he joined No. 38 Squadron. Having then completed six more sorties and emerged from a brace of crash-landings on returning from Tripoli, he transferred to No. 37 Squadron, another Wellington unit, with whom he flew numerous sorties against such targets as Benghazi, Derna and El Adem. Tour-expired in early 1942, he returned to the U.K., where, having been enlisted to participate in the 1,000 bomber raid on Bremen on 25-26 June, he settled down to his duties as an instructor at R.A.F. Honeybourne.

But in May 1943, he returned to an operational footing with No. 161 Squadron at Tempsford, at this time commanded by R.A.F. legend, Group Captain “Pick” Pickard, D.S.O., where he teamed-up as a Rear-Gunner in Flying Officer O. A. Cussens’ Halifax crew. And between then and the end of August, he completed at least 15 clandestine operations - thus trips to the Nestor, Physician, Sacristan, Scientist and Stationer circuits in France where, as verified by relevant O.R.B. entries, his aircraft dropped several “packages” (i.e. agents), in addition to numerous supply containers.

Having then joined Flight Lieutenant Gray’s crew in October, he flew four more sorties that month, but his operational career came to a sudden end on the night of 5 November 1943, when their Halifax crashed on take-off - Pearse sustained a fractured spine. He was awarded the D.F.C., while his old pilot, Olaf Cussen was awarded a Bar to his D.F.C. in the following month.

He saw no further action and ended the War as Assistant Adjutant at R.A.F. Stradishall, Suffolk.

Sold with the recipient’s original R.A.F. Observer’s and Air Gunner’s Flying Log Book (Form 1767), covering the period June 1941 to November 1943, the final entry stating: ‘Operations - crashed on take-off (6 months in “Dock”), together with copied crew photographs and newspaper cutting.