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Cranston Fine Arts  Aviation Art World War Two Veteran Signatures UK and Commonwealth S  Sayer, Raymond |
Warrant Officer Raymond Sayer DFM
Ray Sayer completed 6 ops on S for Sugar. On 8 Feb 1945 his Lanc was attacked by a Ju88 and set on fire. Sayer managed to extinguish the fires enabling the skipper to get the badly damaged Lanc home. For his actions, Sayer was awarded the DFM.
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| Distinguished Flying Medal |
| Warrant Officer Raymond Sayer DFM - Signed Aviation Art |
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| Text for the above items : |
Band of Brothers by Robert Taylor. The mighty Lancaster, the mainstay of RAF Bomber Command, crewed by volunteers from Britain, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Rhodesia, South Africa, and many other nations opposed to Nazi rule, flew day and night sorties whenever there was a chance of reaching the target. Their unflinching courage, and selfless devotion to duty paved the way for the D-Day invasion, and the ultimate liberation of Nazi occupied Europe. Embellished with Goerings infamous quotation No Enemy Plane Will Fly Over The Reich Territory, S for Sugar took her bombs to Berlin, Hamburg, Schweinfurt, Bremen, Hanover, Wurzburg, Munich, Stuttgart, Frankfurt, Dusseldorf, and other prime targets, flying the second greatest number of operational sorties of any bomber in the Command. Time and again Sugar brought her crew home, often limping back riddled with flak and bullet holes, occasionally on three engines, and once all the way back from the German capital with a badly damaged wing following a mid-air collision over the target. Robert Taylors emotive painting shows S for Sugar on the morning of 27th April, 1944 after her 95th sortie - a raid on the ball-bearing factory at Schweinfurt. As the battle-scarred bomber taxies in at RAF Waddington, other 467 Squadron Lancasters follow, heading for their dispersal points. Already the weary crews begin their informal debriefing. By the wars end this trusty bomber had completed no fewer than 137 operations over enemy territory, bringing her crew home every time. Now magnificently restored to her former glory, S for Sugar resides in the RAF Museum at Hendon, providing a lasting tribute to the gallant men of RAF Bomber Command. The famous aircraft was typical of, and ultimately came to symbolise, the men and machines of Royal Air Force Bomber Command. Flying initially with 83 Squadron Pathfinder Force, then 467 Squadron RAAF, Avro Lancaster serial number R5868, call sign S for Sugar, took part in almost every major attack on Germany between the summer of 1942 and the end of hostilities. With the life expectancy of a new Lancaster being just a few months, it was a miracle she survived the war. |
Citation for the Distinguished Flying Medal, Gazetted 24th April 1945.
One night in February, 1945, this airman was the wireless operator in an aircraft detailed to attack a target at Politz. During the bombing run the aircraft was hit by anti-aircraft fire. A piece of shrapnel severed the oil pipe lines to the rear turret and a fierce fire started. Disregarding a warning to be prepared to abandon aircraft, Flight Sergeant Sayer promptly devoted his energies towards quelling the flames. Small arms ammunition was exploding all around. With complete disregard for his own safety, this airman worked heroically. When the last extinguisher was used the fire was still well alight so Flight Sergeant Sayer ripped a hole in the floor, seized the severed ends of the pipe line from, which oil was oozing and feeding the fire, and forced them through the aperture. Thereafter the flames began to subside and Flight Sergeant Sayer extinguished them completely just before he was overcome by the heat and fumes. He soon recovered on receiving attention. This airman displayed great courage, determination and resource and his efforts contributed in a large way to the safe return of the aircraft.
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