Clifford Raymond Andrews

Clifford Raymond "Ray" Andrews

Ray Andrews was born on April 30, 1919 to Torontonian Muriel Irene Woodcock (b. 1894) and her husband William Robert Andrews (Robert), who was born in Witney, Oxfordshire, England in 1892 and came to Canada as an infant the next year. The couple married on May 13, 1914 and had a daughter who sadly was stillborn that December. The family lived in Toronto's east end, at 31 Woodbine Beach in 1920, a row of houses built along the lakeshore between today's Ashbridge's Bay and the foot of Woodbine Avenue. Muriel's relatives lived a few doors away. They soon moved to Rhodes Avenue and by 1924, they were settled at 24 Haslett Avenue, the first owners of the house. Ray entered Norway in 1925. William was a plumber who worked for Purdy Mansell which was a steam and sprinkler contractor on Albert Street. Ray had an older brother, Roy, and a younger sister and brother, Audrey and Gordon.

Ray graduated from Norway in 1933 and attended Malvern Collegiate for three grades. He played some hockey, rugby and basketball. After Malvern, he transferred to Earl Beatty school which had a Commercial course at the time. In 1937, after completing a year of the two year course, his father had Ray apprenticed as a plumber at his company.

A month after the war began, Ray tried to join the RCAF but probably wasn't accepted as the air force was only taking university graduates or men with pilot's licences. A year later, Ray joined The Grey and Simcoe Foresters, an army reserve regiment that was stationed at Camp Borden near Barrie. After a month, he returned to civilian life. In March 1941 he joined The Queen's York Rangers for a Legion sponsored course that would give him the educational standard required by the RCAF.

Ray enlisted in the air force on June 5, 1941 and after nine weeks of basic training and aptitude tests at the Exhibition grounds and in St. Hubert, Quebec, he was shipped to Moncton, New Brunswick on August 9 where he probably performed guard duty until a course opened up. He began ground lessons in Victoriaville, Quebec, taking courses like Meteorology and Navigation. On November 23 he shifted to the newly opened training airfield at L'Ancienne Lorette, now a suburb of Quebec City, for his elementary flying training. Here he trained for 50 hours on Finch airplanes, a two seater biplane. In March he transferred back to St. Hubert, near Montreal for his service flying training on the Harvard trainer airplane and it is where he received his wings on July 3, 1942. He was also promoted to Flight Sergeant. Ray returned to Toronto for his embarkation leave until July 18.

Fleet Finch trainer plane. From www.ingeniumcanada.org.

Unfortunately Ray had many entries on his discipline report and spent a total of 33 days confined to base for charges of gambling on the base, being asleep at his post and being late for flying duty, among other charges. After he reached Britain, on August 6, 1942, his behaviour was mostly exemplary.

He was sent to Advanced Flying Training school for two months at RAF Ossington, about 50 kilometres southeast of Sheffield, then he began training as a pilot on Wellington night bombers at No. 30 Operational Training Unit (OTU) at RAF Hixton, near Stafford, England . On February 15, 1943, he continued at No. 27 OTU at RAF Lichfield, not far from Hixton. On May 17, he was posted to No. 199 Squadron based in Ingham in northeast England. The squadron was training for maritime mine laying duties off the east coast of England but also flew bombing missions over Germany. Ray had his first mission on May 25, to bomb Dortmund. It was considered “a very successful trip” and a boost to the new pilot's confidence.

Vickers Wellington bomber. United Kingdom Government photo.

Ray and his crew had another good mission to Dusseldorf and then they began dropping mines on May 30. This was done at night and the mines descended to the water with parachutes. The Wellington's port engine failed and they landed at Middle Wallop, close to Southampton and 200 miles from their home airfield.

Their next sortie was June 11, the target being Dusseldorf again. Ray's crew was William Henry Bellhouse, an RAF navigator; RAF air bomber Patrick Edward Kevin Daly Merry, 21 years old from Morden, Surrey; William Edward Jackson, the 20 year old wireless operator/air gunner from Anstey, Leicestershire; and Leonard Richard Barrow, the 21 year old rear gunner from Dagenham, Essex. They took off at 2312 hrs and apparently dropped their bombs on their target. On the return journey, the weather was rainy with a low cloud cover. Unteroffizier Karl-Georg Pfeiffer, a night fighter pilot and his navigator were prowling around. The navigator, Willi Knapp, looked at his Lichtenstein radar. He said:

'”That's an old hand, he's weaving about all the time even though he'll soon be home.” By now we were so far away from area Hering that the voice of the JLO had grown quite faint. There was nothing to be seen. I was in cloud nearly all the time and had to keep my eyes on the artificial horizon. We were just able to make out, “I cannot guide you any more” then all contact broke off. Willi Knapp [the navigator] was still watching the Lichtenstein and giving me new directions. Then he said, “He must be somewhere here.” But I could see nothing. As I was worried that I might ram the enemy aircraft in the clouds I went a little lower and searched through the upper part of the windscreen. Willi was no longer able to help me and also stared. Without thinking I happened to take a look directly above me and spotted two tiny flames, the exhaust ports. Two engines? It could only be a Wellington [HE277 on 199 Squadron which was lost with all on the crew of Flight Sergeant Clifford Raymond Andrews RCAF]. This type did not burn easily and was well armoured. However, I had to have a go at it. The red fuel warning lights were already on and blinded me. I had difficulty in matching his weaving about, then, as I had been taught, attacked. A long burst but without effect. A quick breakaway, then the same all over again. This time I fired a little to the left in order to hit an engine. At last there was a small flame, which grew slowly larger. Then it spread to the fuselage and the port wing. I kept my distance as the rear gunner might open fire. A number of crews had been lost this way. At last the burning machine dipped a little, tipped on its nose and went hurtling down into the sea thirty kilometres west of Ijmuiden at 0240.'

from Nachtjagd, Defenders of the Reich, 1940 – 1943 by Martin W. Bowman. Barnsley: Pen and Sword Aviation, 2016.

Ray's name is on the Runnymede Memorial in England and on the Bomber Command Memorial Wall in Nanton, Alberta.

Ray's father passed away on September 25, 1953. His mother lived at 24 Haslett Avenue until 1959.