Marcus Kramer

Flight Lieutenant Marcus Kramer, DFC was an English officer of the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve who died during the Second World War.
He was born on 25 December 1911,Ancestry.com. 1939 England and Wales Register [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2018. in Bermondsey, the son of wholesale draper Emanuel and Rosie Kramer (née Black), of London and Melbourne, Australia, respectively. A pharmacist, Kramer enlisted in March 1939 as an untrained observer and was commissioned in February 1940. Jewish Historical Studies: Transactions of the Jewish Historical Society of England, Volumes 38-39, p. 192.The Times (49121), Col E, p. 7: "Fallen Officers". 31 December 1941. He was a private pilot before the commencement of the war.
Kramer flew operationally with 600 (City of London) Squadron, equipped with Bristol Blenheims. On 10 May 1940, six Blenheims of 600 Squadron were tasked with the bombing of Waalhaven airport, which had been occupied by German paratroopers. All but one of the aircraft were shot down by German Bf 110s. Having crash-landed in shallow water near Overflakkee Island, Kramer and pilot R.C. Haine evaded capture for three days until being extracted by the Royal Navy destroyer HMS Hereward. It is presumed in the book 'RAF Evaders' that Hereward also collected another downed member of 600 Squadron, Sergeant Davis. The three men, along with three aircrew of 142 Squadron shot down on the same day, are reputed to have been the first RAF evaders of the war.Clutton-Brock, Oliver (2009), RAF evaders: The Comprehensive Story of Thousands of Escapers and Their Escape Lines, Western Europe, 1940-1945, p. 1.
In July, Kramer was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. He was presumed killed on 21 May 1941 when his aircraft crashed into the River Severn, near to Beachley. At the time of his death, he was Group Gunnery Officer of HQ 10 Group, based at RAF Hullavington, Wiltshire, and engaged on armament inspection duties. It has been written that he was with 29 Squadron, but this is not the case.
He has no known grave and is commemorated by the Runnymede Memorial.
==Notes==
==References==
*Ancestry.co.uk.
*Kramer, Marcus, cwgc.org. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
Category:1911 births
Category:1941 deaths
Category:British military personnel
Category:British people of Jewish descent
Category:British people of Australian descent
Category:Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve
Category:Burial Unknown
Category:Runnymede Memorial
Category:Flight Lieutenants