The Ron Penhall Collection

The Second World War Typhoon pilot’s North-West Europe operations D.F.C. group of five awarded to Flying Officer S. “Crusher” Croft, Royal Air Force, who flew in excess of 100 operational sorties between D-Day and the end of hostilities: he had earlier operated out of Biggin Hill in Spitfires of 73 Squadron

Distinguished Flying Cross, G.VI.R., reverse officially dated ‘1945’; 1939-45 Star; Air Crew Europe Star, clasp, France and Germany; Defence and War Medals, good very fine or better (5) £2500-3000

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, The Ron Penhall Collection.

View
Collection

On 2 October 1941, a dozen of the squadron’s Spitfires encountered a group of 15 Me. 109s and several dog-fights ensued in which Croft thought he may have damaged one enemy aircraft, his flying log book noting: ‘Fired 3 bursts c. & m./g. 1 Me.109F possibly hit, smoke stream from fuselage. Camera confirmation. 200 yds. full beam.’ He went on to complete a further 16 operational sweeps and convoy patrols before the end of November when he was posted to No. 1 P.R.U. at Benson, and thence, two months later, back to No. 72, but on this occasion he did not fly operationally, and was re-mustered with No. 116 Squadron, with whom he flew Lysanders and Ansons on A.A. and S.L.C. Calibration Flights until the end of October 1943.

Refresher courses, further training and air tests on Spitfires, Hurricanes and Typhoons engaged him until the beginning of July 1944 when once again he was posted to an operational squadron, this time No. 247 Squadron, a Typhoon unit based at St Croix. And it was in Typhoons that he would quickly excel himself, earning the nickname from his fellow pilots of “Crusher”.

During June 1944 the squadron flew 410 sorties in support of the invasion and throughout July and August it was engaged in continuous Armed Reconnaissance and Rocket Projectile sorties against tanks, gun emplacements, troop concentrations and transport convoys in the area of the Falaise Gap, a momentous and costly period for the rocket firing Typhoons.

In official terms the squadron was engaged on V.C.P. (Visual Control Post) flying in co-operation with the advancing Army formations which directed the strike aircraft on “cab-rank duty” on to specific ground targets. The loss of pilots was heavy, however, the Typhoon being highly vulnerable to ground fire in low-level attacks, and almost every page of “Crusher” Croft’s flying log book records the loss of yet another of his comrades.

On September 17 the Wing attacked concentrated flak positions at Arnhem prior to operation “Market Garden”, 64 machines taking part with no losses (‘Wonders wil never cease’), and on this day it is recorded in the squadron’s Operational Record Book that W./O. Croft and two others were recommended for a commission. On the following two days, as the Airborne invasion of Holland got underway with an almost continuous stream of gliders and heavies landing with supplies for the airborne forces, weather conditions were sufficiently poor to prevent much flying. From the 22nd, however, attacks resumed against targets around Arnhem, Eindhoven and the Reichswald forest.

By early October, Croft was leading his own patrols as “Blue 1”, but squadron morale had hit a low point, both as a result of pilot losses and because of the high failure rate amongst the replacement Typhoons being sent out from England. Worse was to follow on New Year’s Day 1945, when the Luftwaffe struck back in a concerted effort to destroy the menace that was coming from our advanced airfields in Holland, an event recorded in the squadron’s Operational Record Book:

‘Then, out of the blue, came the whistle of bombs, the scream of diving planes, the chatter of machine-guns, the heavier thump of cannon, and it seemed as though the flood gates of Hell had suddenly swung back to release old Nick’s devilish horde. First came the jet bombers, and after bombs away, the M.Es and J.Us. Wave after wave they came in, strafing the airfield from end to end - twenty three minutes of hell that paralysed everyone ... Petrol dumps were set on fire, a bomb dump of 143 Wing was set on fire and 1000lb. bombs exploded every few minutes, individual kites in dispersals were set on fire, rockets ignited and flashed in all directions, equipment section went up in a glorious mass of flames, Austers flapped their wings and joined in the conflagration, and slowly a pall of smoke settled in the air above the airfield and blotted out the sun, to turn the morning light into evening twilight. Ammo finished and their Devil’s bag of tricks empty, the Hun made for home, and found, probably to his amusement, hordes of Spits and Tempests waiting to bounce him. It is estimated that of the 100-plus that attacked the airfield, 44 were shot down. Of the 900-plus that operated today on all fronts, 385 were shot down. Damage on the airfield was quite extensive: No. 247 had 5, No. 137 had 11, and No. 181 had 8 aircraft serviceable. No. 182 had all u./s. A day to remember.’

Replacement aircraft having arrived, Croft and his fellow pilots were back in business by mid-January and on 24 March he flew his 100th “Tiffy” operation, on the day of the 2nd Army’s commando assault across the Rhine, prior to the subsequent Airborne landings. On that day the squadron flew 34 sorties and Croft noted in his flying log book: ‘Blue 1. Attack on strong point at Ringenburg as Airborne troops landed. Wizard! Engaged flak positions in support of Dakotas. Kites pranging right & left. Cliff Monk down (captured 30 Huns).’ On the following day 26 sorties were flown and on the 26th another 30 sorties, all inflicting great damage on the retreating enemy. Throughout April the onslaught continued and on the 15th the squadron’s Operational Record Book recorded: ‘A pretty quiet day today, marked only by the good news that “Crusher” Croft is now P./O. Croft - his health was duly drunk in the Mess - this piece of news was closely followed by the information that “Nick” Carter is also P./O., two days junior to “Crusher”. We are all pleased, as “Crusher” has been trying for two years to get the thin ring, and he has certainly done some fine work indeed towards ending the war.’

On 1st May Croft entered: ‘Blue 1. Armed Recce Schwerin area. Terrific! M.E.T. all over the place. 5 destroyed, God knows how many damaged. Total claims 22-25. Falaise all over again with no flak. Wacco!) On the 2nd he entered in his log: ‘Red 1. A.R. Plön area. Bags of M.E.T. no flak. 3 destroyed, 10 damaged. Total claims 15-30,’ and beside he wrote, ‘upon visiting target area it was found that Jock McTavish & myself destroyed 17 vehicles in a 200yd stretch & I didn’t claim them!’ This was ‘Crusher’ Croft’s final operational sortie and two days later the war in Europe was over.

Croft remained in 247 Squadron, latterly flying Tempests, until October 1945 , when he transferred to a Communications Flight back in the U.K., where he served until March 1946.

Sold with the recipient’s original Flying Log Book, covering the period January 1941 to January 1947, a selection of wartime photographs (11) and a good deal of research, largely drawn from his operational squadron O.R.Bs, these latter bound in a blue-buckram volume with gilt title; together with a copy of the book, The Day of the Typhoon, Flying with the R.A.F. Tankbuster in Normandy, by John Golley.

Provenance: Dix Noonan Webb, 22 September 2000 (Lot 778).