Sergeant Philip Charles Livesey WICKS (910019)
77 Squadron Royal Air Force

Date of birth: 10th August 1916
Date of death: 3rd April 1941

Killed in action aged 24
Buried at St Michael's Church, Waddington in Lincolnshire
Philip Charles Livesey Wicks was born in Shropshire on the 10th of August 1916 the only son of John Gammon Wicks, a solicitor, and Louisa Maria Knight (nee Richards) Wicks, of “The Cedars”, Bristol Road, Thornbury in Gloucestershire.

He was educated at Lancing College where he was in Gibbs House from January 1930 to July 1933. On leaving school he worked as a commercial traveller. He had a passion for machinery and was always seeking ways to improve the performance of his car.

On the outbreak of war he volunteered immediately for service with the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve, rising to the rank of Sergeant.

On the evening of the 3rd of April 1941 51 Wellingtons, 27 Whitleys, 11 Blenheims and 1 Stirling bomber were despatched for an attack on Brest where their target was a number of German warships which were in the harbour there.

Philip Wicks and his crew took off at 7.04pm from RAF Topcliffe in Whitley Mk V P4947 KN-J for the operation. In the event the warships proved difficult to locate, with most of the bombs falling to the west of the city. One bomb, however, hit the Continental Hotel where the naval staff and many of the ship’s officers were just sitting down to supper. The resulting explosion caused considerable casualties.

Having completed their mission, Philip Wicks and his crew returned, but experienced severe icing of the airframe and had lost their trailing aerial due to severe static. They diverted to RAF Waddington where, when they came into land, they landed within seven feet of the third flare and then opened up the engines with the apparent intention of doing another circuit. While making a second circuit of the airfield at 300 feet, the aircraft stalled and crashed into the ground two fields away from the airfield perimeter at 10.04pm. The aircraft burst into flames, killing all but one of the crew.

The crew was:-

Sergeant Kenneth George William Kyle (Pilot)
Sergeant William Edgar Godfrey (Pilot)
Sergeant Philip Charles Livesey Wicks (Navigator)
Flight Sergeant Alan Leigh Kennedy (Wireless Operator)
Sergeant Gordon Engel (Wireless Operator/Air Gunner) (survived)

Theirs was one of three aircraft lost during the operation.

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