# No. 640 Squadron RAF

No. 640 Squadron RAF was a heavy bomber squadron of the Royal Air Force during the Second World War.

## History

No. 640 Squadron was first formed at RAF Leconfield, East Riding of Yorkshire on 7 January 1944, from 'C' Flight of No. 158 Squadron RAF. It was equipped with Halifax Mk.III bombers, and operated as part of No. 4 Group in Bomber Command. It re-equipped with Halifax VI bombers in March 1945, and was disbanded at RAF Leconfield on 7 May of that year.

### Operational highlights

* First Operational Mission 5 Halifaxes bombed Berlin while 3 others aborted on the night from 20 to 21 January 1944
* Last Operational Mission 18 Halifaxes bombed gun batteries on the island of Wangerooge on 25 April 1945
Listed below are further operational highlights for the Wakeman crew (see photograph right) :
| Position | Name crew member | Known as |
| Captain | F/O R.Wakeman, DFC | Jimmy |
| Navigator | P/O Reginald William Parr, DFC | Reg |
| Bomb Aimer | F/O C.B.Morrison, RCAF, DFC | Cliff |
| W/Op | F/Sgt. H.Bearyman | Harry |
| Flt.Eng. | F/Sgt. P.McPhie | Peter |
| Mid-upper Gunner | F/S R.Thomas | Tommy |
| Rear Gunner | F/Sgt. E.G.Humphries | Eric |
Individual missions for the above named crew, data from :
| Date (all dates are in 1944) | Off | Back | Target | Mission Detail | Bomb Load (lbs) | Individual Aircraft Code | Aircraft Serial No. |
| 6 August | 11:12 | 14:27 | Forêt de Nieppe | V-Weapon Sites. | 16×500 | X | |
| 7 August | 20:53 | 01:48 | May-sur-Orne | Army Support – Five aiming points in front of Allied ground troops in Normandy. | 9×1000 | H | NA573 |
| 9 August | 11:53 | 15:28 | Le Châtellier | Chemical works. | 4×500 | X | |
| 10 August | 20:50 | 03:50 | Dijon | A railway junction and the railway yards. | 4×500 | J | |
| 11 August | 18:22 | 22:07 | Étaples | Railway bridge. | 4×500 | Z | |
| 15 August | 09:40 | 13:45 | Eindhoven | Airfield | 4×500 | B | MZ561 |
| 16 August | 21:40 | 01:45 | Kiel | | 4×500 | B | MZ561 |
| 18 August | 22:20 | 03:00 | Sterkrade/Holten, Ruhr. | Ruhrchemie AG synthetic oil plant (SBC = small bomb container) | 1×2000, 4×SBC | B | MZ561 |
| 9 September | 06:44 | 11:09 | Le Havre | Abandoned – cloud. | 16×500 | G | |
| 11 September | 05:19 | 09:49 | Cadillac | | 7×1000, 6×500 | K | |
| 12 September | 16:15 | 20:50 | Münster | | 1×2000 & Incendiary | P | MZ678 |
| 17 September | 06:52 | 10:43 | Boulogne | German positions in preparation for an attack by Allied troops. | 9×1000, 4×500 | J | NP631 |
| 25 September | 06:35 | 10:36 | Calais | German defensive positions. | 9×1000, 4×500 | J | NP931 |
| 27 September | 09:29 | 13:03 | Calais | German defensive positions. | 9×1000, 4×500 | D | LW554 |
| 30 September | 09:45 | 14:22 | Bottrop, Ruhr. | Oil plant. | 16×500 | H | MZ344 |
| 6 October | 14:28 | 19:04 | Sterkrade/Holten, Ruhr. | Ruhrchemie AG Synthetic oil plant. | 16×500 | J | NP931 |
| 7 October | 11:45 | 16:03 | Kleve | Army support – Approach routes by which German units could threaten the vulnerable Allied right flank near Nijmegen. | 9×1000, 4×500 | J | NP931 |
| 15 October | 00:16 | 05:53 | Duisburg | | 8×1000, 5×500 | K | MZ930 |
| 15 October | 17:48 | 21:41 | Wilhelmshaven | | 8×1000, 5×500 | K | MZ930 |
| 25 October | 12:09 | 17:51 | Essen | Industrial concerns, particularly to the Krupps steelworks. | 9×1000, 4×500 | J | NP931 |
| 28 October | 09:45 | 13:05 | Walcheren | Gun positions at 5 places on the rim of the island. | 1×2000, 7×1000, 4×500 | L | NP931 |
| 31 October | 18:03 | 23:10 | Cologne | | 1×2000, 6×1000, 5×500 | G | MZ404 |
| 2 November | 16:05 | 22:00 | Düsseldorf | | 1×2000 & Incendiary | J | NP931 |
| 4 November | 17:34 | 22:34 | Bochum | Industrial areas, particularly the steelworks. | 1×2000, 6×1000, 5×500 | J | NP931 |
| 6 November | 11:42 | 16:42 | Gelsenkirchen | Nordstern synthetic-oil plant. | 1×2000, 6×1000, 5×500 | J | NP931 |
| 16 November | 12:43 | 17:30 | Jülich | Army support – cut communications behind the German lines. | 1×2000, 6×1000, 5×500 | J | NP931 |
| 21 November | 17:25 | 23:55 | Sterkrade/Holten, Ruhr. | Ruhrchemie AG Synthetic oil plant. | 16×500 | J | NP931 |
| 29 November | 02:26 | 08:22 | Essen | Industrial areas, including the Krupps works. | 1×2000, 16×500 | J | NP931 |
| 2 December | 17:35 | 00:07 | Hagen | Industrial areas – unknown at the time this included a factory making U-boat accumulator batteries. | 1×2000 & Incendiary | J | NP931 |
| 12 December | 16:24 | 21:58 | Essen | Industrial areas, including the Krupps works. | 1×2000, 4×1000, 6×500 | J | NP931 |
| 22 December | 15:05 | 21:33 | Bingen am Rhein | Railway yards. | 1×2000, 4×1000, 6×500 | J | NP931 |
| 24 December | 11:17 | 16:42 | Essen/Mülheim | Airfields. | 5×1000, 8×250 | J | NP931 |

## Aircraft operated

Aircraft operated by no. 640 Squadron RAF, data from :
| From | To | Aircraft | Version |
| January 1944 | March 1945 | Handley-Page Halifax | Mk.III |
| March 1945 | May 1945 | Handley-Page Halifax | Mk.VI |

## Squadron bases

Base operated by no. 640 Squadron RAF, data from :
| From | To | Name |
| 7 January 1944 | 7 May 1945 | RAF Leconfield, East Riding of Yorkshire |