‘S’ for ‘Sugar’ Martin Willoughby Barnes Wallis and Bomber Harris

What follows is the unique and amazing story of a valued customer and friend Martin Willoughby who met some of the legends of Great Britain, Sir Barnes Wallis most famous for designing the Bouncing bomb and Sir Author Bomber Harris who took the war to the enemy in a time when Bombing was the only way for Britain to wage war against the Nazi war machine. His father played a major role in the preservation and restoration of the famous S for Sugar Lancaster.

Above a Young Martin with Sir Barnes Wallis holding a picture of himself with Sir Author Bomber Harris.

I have been asked to tell the story behind my interest in RAF Bomber Command and in particular my connection with the Avro Lancaster now on display at the RAF Museum, Hendon.

It all started in 1969, when I went on a journey with my dad to RAF Scampton in Lincolnshire. The purpose was to identify the Lancaster which resided there as gate guardian. I was 4 years of age and did not really understand why we were there at the time, but for my dad it was to be the end of many years of searching for his old aircraft. My dad’s introduction to aviation was at the age of 14 when he worked at the Short Seaplane works at Rochester, building radial engine cowlings. He naturally went on to join the RAF in 1939, and served as an engine fitter on 463/467 Sqns at Bottesford (and later on at Waddington, when the squadrons moved there in 1942). Dad’s Lancaster was the 27th built and was originally laid down as an Avro Manchester. It was produced at t he Metropolitan Vickers Works, Mosley Road, Trafford Park, Manchester and was delivered to 83 Sqn at Scampton in 1942 where the code letters OL-Q were applied.

It was later transferred to 467 Sqn at Waddington and my dad was there to receive it when it was delivered by the ferry pilot (who told him that it was finished, fit only for the scrap heap!). However, this was not to be, and from then on until the end of the war my dad was responsible for maintaining and repairing its engines, and is one of a very few people to have had constant contact with the aircraft as crews came and went.

The code letters PO-S were applied to the fuselage and the aircraft became affectionately known as  S ‘Sugar’ - the nose art at delivery depicted a red devil dancing in flames and thumbing his nose, with the motto "Devils of the Air" beneath it (the devil was ‘Mestophelise’ to whom Faust sold his soul in German legend). This was later painted out and replaced with the image of a naked lady holding and about to drop a bomb.

 Losses were high during the war, the worst years being 1943/44, and by the end of the Second World War over 55,000 airmen had lost their lives on Bomber Command alone. To put that figure into context it is now greater than the operational strength of the RAF today, in 2011.

As time went on people began to get a feeling that this was no ordinary aircraft. The bombing missions began to mount up and ‘Sugar’ seemed indestructible. She had a bomb that was being loaded on to her accidentally dropped and it did not blow up, and when she collided over Berlin with another Lancaster she made it home. On another occasion, when during evasive action in the attempt to get away from a night fighter the pilot had to push the aircraft to the limits of its endurance, the crew heard what they believed to be machine gun fire - it was in fact hundreds of pop rivets being torn from their mountings!

 Because the propaganda machine began to recognize the value of such an aircraft the naked lady nose art had to go and was replaced by one bomb for each operation completed. At that time my dad had been reading a ‘Readers Digest’ and saw a quotation by Hermann Georing in which he said to the German people "NO ENEMY PLANE WILL FLY OVER THE REICH TERRITORY”.

He requested that he be allowed to apply this to the nose art signed with the authors name and got his wish; however my dad spelt ‘Hermann’ with only one ‘n’ - a mistake that remains to this day. Lancaster ‘S – Sugar’ at the RAF Museum, Hendon

By Martin Willoughby

William Joyce alias Lord Haw-Haw (who was later hanged for broadcasting German propaganda) broadcasted that when the notorious German Army marches through Great Britain that the airman responsible for this outrage ‘will pay’ for his actions. ‘Sugar’ went on to become the first bomber to reach 100 ops, surviving a sustained attack by two Ju88 night fighters. Upon her return a scaffold was erected alongside the cockpit on which the seven man crew (captained by Fg Off Schofield) stood and were toasted by the Squadron. ‘Sugar’ also went nine times to Berlin;

Crews begged to fly in her and the in joke was that she did not need a navigator because she knew her own way home. She dropped her last bombs on Czechoslovakia completing an incredible 137 operational sorties.

With the war over my dad went back to civvy street and that should have been the end of the story. As the years went, on my dad began to wonder what had happened to ‘Sugar’ and whether or not she had been broken up without thought. He had made several fruitless enquiries and was about to give up when he was informed that there was a Lancaster at the gate at RAF Scampton. However he was told that it had the wrong code letters on it to be ‘Sugar’ which brings me back to the start of the story my journey to Lincolnshire - you see my dad had decided that it was worth a trip to see this mysterious Lancaster anyway.

On our arrival approaching Scampton’s gates from the south the Lancaster came into view and the disappointing code letters OL-Q could be seen. However, as we turned into the gate the familiar nose art with the bombs and the Georing quotation were apparent and on gaining entry my dad went straight to the tail number which identified the aircraft beyond doubt - it read R5868.

My dad could not believe his eyes! His Lancaster had survived everything, even the scrap yard, which when you consider it was just one of over 7000 Lancaster's built seemed unbelievable. We later discovered that 83 Sqn were at Waddington flying Vulcan's, and when they was realized that ‘Sugar’ had started her career on 83 Sqn the old OL-Q code letters were reapplied hence the confusion over her identity. We went onboard and were met with a scene of decay and neglect, all of the internal components had been removed for PA474 (the only flying example at that time), and ‘Sugar’ was in poor condition.

Permission was gained for my dad to carry out a restoration project on the aircraft and many trips were made to work on her and obtain missing parts. My dad had his heart set on ‘Sugar’ going into the new RAF Museum at Reception following the 100th sortie A famous wartime publicity photograph: ‘100 Not Out’

‘S’ for ‘Sugar’ suggestion to the MOD. After many months of wrangling he was contacted by Dr John Tanner, the new Museum’s top man, who informed him his wish would come true. Before ‘Sugar’ was dismantled in 1970, the Station Commander asked if he could do anything for my dad to show his appreciation.

My dad requested an entire squadron of Vulcan's to fly low over ‘Sugar’ for a photo opportunity. The Station Commander was not amused and dismissed the request pointing out the massive cost of such a task. After a few days had passed, my dad was contacted and told he could, however, have one Vulcan for the purpose. ‘Sugar’ was then transported to Hendon via Bicester and Northolt and after many years of spending long weekends manufacturing parts, scratch rebuilding, fitting and collecting parts with my dad, it still brings a tear to my eye when I turn the corner and see ‘Sugar’ proudly dominating the entrance to Bomber Command Hall in all her glory.

 Her restoration was complete and she remains at Hendon for all to see and hopefully for all to remember the sacrifice made by all in that bombing campaign of many years ago.

Some of the more memorable moments for me over those years were from meeting famous people that are still to this day icons within the aviation community. I was lucky to come into contact with people such as ‘Bomber’ Harris, Barnes Wallis, Bob Stanford Tuck, and Nicholas Alkomade (who jumped out of a burning Lancaster at 18000 ft without a parachute and survived).

 During the numerous reunions to which I was invited I often met Sir Arthur ‘Bomber’ Harris, MRAF. He took a shine to the young Willoughby and made me promise that I would one day join the RAF - hence you know who to blame! I can recall he also asked me to reply to a question by post - the question was “what's the difference between a man of Kent and a Kentish man?” The answer of course is that they live on opposite sides of the river Medway. I sent the letter and was sent by return of post an autographed war time photo of him.

 He jokingly told my dad if I ever came up for adoption he would adopt me. Surprised I was! I saw him as a mild mannered old gentleman.  Who held the total commitment and loyalty of the men and women under his command.

They affectionately referred to him as “Butch” during the dark days of the Second World War and to this day I have yet to meet a veteran who does not vigorously defend his actions in respect of the bombing offensive. A painting of me with Bomber Harris was commissioned and presented at the Grosvenor Hotel, Park Lane, London.

My dad also made the acquaintance and later worked with Sir Barnes Wallis. He built the Mk2 catapult with which Sir Barnes launched models of his hypersonic aircraft down his garden. On my many visits to his house Lady Mary Wallis would stuff me with chocolates in front of their open fire and regale me of stories of the war.

 At the age of ten I can recall my first meeting with Sir Barnes and can remember saying to my dad that he seemed such a nice person that I felt sorry for him. I think his personality made him seem vulnerable in some way and, as depicted in the Dambuster film, I can imagine his torment over the loss of the crews that took part in the Dams raid. Following his death I was invited to the requiem mass that took place in St Paul's and remember sitting only a few seats away from his other biggest supporter, Prince Charles.

 It never ceases to amaze me that people still seem as interested in this subject now as they were in the 1970’s, and the older I get the more I seem to get involved. I was recently asked to give an hour long talk on the history and restoration of ‘Sugar’ by the Museum at RAF Welford (USAF).

 I was given such a warm welcome and the interest was so great that they have invited me back. It’s nice to see what a good job they have done in preserving the memory of our heritage for future generations to see, and because of my dad’s efforts in respect of preservation this is of great importance to me. So now you know why I am so interested in that era and why I am always happy to be a part of an Honour Guard, and why I will always have time for the 624 Sqn veterans. Simply because I have been lucky enough to have had a unique insight into that period of history, as well as much personal contact with the aircraft, the aircrew and ground crews of the most famous Lancaster of them all - ‘S for Sugar’. SAC Martin WILLOUGHBY

  I am hugely grateful to Martin for allowing me to publish his story on the website.