Squadron Leader John Olding HINKS (36014)
9 Squadron Royal Air Force

Date of birth: 28th December 1910
Date of death: 15th October 1940

Killed in action aged 29
Buried at Berlin 1939-1945 War Cemetery Plot 9 Row E Grave 16
John Olding Hinks was born at Putney in South London on the 28th of December 1910 the son of Major Edward Hinks MBE BSC FIC, President of the Institute of Chemistry, and Mildred Annie (nee Mullins) Hinks of 110 Riddlesdown Road, Purley in Surrey.

He was educated at Downside School, Purley and at Lancing College where he was in Heads House from September 1924 to July 1929. He served as a member of the Officer Training Corps, where he achieved Certificate A in 1928 and was promoted to Sergeant on the 1st of January 1929. He was a member of the Swimming Team in 1929. He gained his School Certificate in 1926 and his Higher Certificate in 1927, 1928 and 1929, receiving a Distinction in maths in both of the latter two years. He was appointed as a Prefect in 1928. He won a Mathematical Scholarship to Pembroke College Cambridge in 1929 and became a Meryon Scholar for Mechanical Science in 1931. He achieved a 1st in Mechanical Science Tripos in 1932 and was appointed as Beaton Scholar in 1931. He also won the Armourer's and Braziers Research Fellowship in Aeronautics from 1932 to 1934 and was a member of the University Air Squadron.

He was commissioned as a Pilot Officer on probation in the Royal Air Force Reserve of Officers on the 20th of March 1930 and was confirmed in his rank on the 20th of March 1931. He was awarded his "Wings" on the 31st of March 1931 and was promoted to Flying Officer on 20th of September 1931. On the 29th of September 1934 he was granted a permanent commission in the Royal Air Force with the rank of Pilot Officer, with seniority from the 29th of March 1933 and attended the Royal Air Force College Cranwell. On the 2nd of March 1935 he was posted to 13 (Army Co-Operation) Squadron at Netheravon and was promoted to Flying Officer on the 29th of March 1935. On the 21st of April 1936 he was posted to the Headquarters of Training Command at Stanmore where he served as personal assistant to Air Marshall Charles Burnett, Air Officer Commanding Training Command. He was posted to the Air Armament School at Eastchurch on the 18th of January 1937 and was promoted to Flight Lieutenant on the 29th of March 1937 with seniority from the 1st of October 1936. He was posted to the Royal Aircraft Establishment at South Farnborough on the 21st of December 1937 and was promoted to Squadron Leader on the 1st of April 1939.

In early 1940 he was posted (believed to be at his own request) to Bomber Command where he attended 11 Operational Training Unit at RAF Bassingbourn on No. 12 Wellington conversion course until the 10th of August 1940.He was posted to 9 Squadron who, from early September 1940, who were engaged in bombing raids against German invasion barges in the French channel ports. John Hinks described their work in a BBC broadcast that month. On the 23rd of September 1940 he flew one of nine aircraft from 9 Squadron who took part in an operation against Berlin, the first of the war. By the 14th of October 1940 he had flown at least nineteen operations with the squadron.

On the night of the 14th /15th of October 1940 78 Hampdens, Wellingtons and Whitneys were despatched by Bomber Command for operations on Berlin, Stettin, Bohlen, Magdeburg and Le Havre. At Magdeburg the raiders succesfully attacked the oil refineries and storage facilities with one stick of bombs causing eighteen seperate explosions.

John Hinks and his crew took off from RAF Honington at 8.29pm on the 14th of October 1940 in Wellington Mk IC T2464 WS-K bound for an attack on the oil refineries and storage plants at Magdeburg. There was no contact with the aircraft after take off other than a radio test immediately after it took off. Following an attack by a German night fighter, the aircraft crashed near Garedelegen, almost directly south of Salzwedel, a town astride the River Jeetze some 74 kilometres north-north-west of Magdeburg at 12.58am with the loss of the entire crew. The aircraft was claimed by Oberfeldwebel Gerhard Herzog of 1/NJG1 at 12.55am, one of an eventual fourteen victories before he was killed in action on the 21st of October 1943.

The crew was: -

Squadron Leader John Olding Hinks (Pilot)
Pilot Officer Guy Paul Wentworth Austin (Second Pilot)
Sergeant Albert Edgar Skidmore (Navigator)
Sergeant Colin Hay (Wireless Operator/Air Gunner)
Sergeant Eric Nield (Wireless Operator/Air Gunner)
Pilot Officer John Edward Bartlett (Rear Gunner)

The following day five Wellingtons from the squadron carried out a search for the missing aircraft but without success.

his father received the following telegram dated the 15th of October 1940: - Regret to inform you that your son Squadron Leader John Olding Hinks is reported missing on 15th October 1940 as a result of air operations. Letter follows. Any further information received will be immediately communicated to you. Should news of him reach you from source please inform this department."

His father received a further telegram dated the 22nd of October 1940: - "Deeply regret to inform you that further information received from International Red Cross states that your son Squadron Leader john Olding Hinks is reported believed to have lost his life as the result of air operations on Oct 15th 40. Letter follows. Any further information will be immdeiately communicated to you."

When interviewed after the war, the local Burgomeister, Herr Siemann, stated that he was not sure if it was a two or four engined aircraft but that it was shot down by a night fighter while travelling from east to west.

The crew was buried in the southwest corner of Plathe Cemetery on the 16th of October 1940 but their bodies were exhumed on the 25th of June 1947 and moved to their present site.

He was mentioned in despatches on the 29th of February 1940 for "Gallantry and devotion to duty in the execution of air operations".

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