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Aircraftman 2nd Class Samuel John Kerr of Portadown, Co. Armagh died on 26th November 1940 at a military hospital at R.A.F. Honington, Suffolk, England.
During the Second World War, thousands of Ulstermen and women served in the Royal Air Force, and many squadrons made use of airfields across Northern Ireland.
Royal Air Force
On 19th November 1940, a photographer from the Belfast Telegraph captured a series of photos of R.A.F. 245 (Northern Rhodesian) Squadron in Northern Ireland.
On 18th November 1940, a photographer from the Belfast Telegraph captured a series of photos of R.A.F. 502 (Ulster) Squadron based at Aldergrove, Co. Antrim.
Merchant Navy
S.S. Kenbane Head went down after coming under attack near Greenland. Many of the Merchant Navy crew who died hailed from Northern Ireland.
Carpenter James McNeilly Belshaw of Ballywalter, Co. Down was on board S.S. Kenbane Head when it came under attack from a German vessel on 5th November 1940.
During late 1940, R.A.F. 144 Squadron operating Handley Page Hampden bombers carried out night-time raids over occupied Europe dropping both leaflets and bombs.
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Pilot Officer Thomas Dawson of Portadown, Co. Armagh died on 1st November 1940 while piloting a Handley Page Hampden bomber on a raid over Berlin, Germany.
N0. 968 Barrage Balloon Squadron operated in Belfast from September 1940 to December 1943. At first they had 16 balloons but by 1943 this total was 40 balloons.
British Troops in Northern Ireland
53rd (Welsh) Infantry Division arrived in Northern Ireland in 1940 following the fall of France. The aim was to protect Ulster from the threat of Nazi invasion.
Royal Navy
H.M. Submarine Narwhal left Northumberland, England in July 1940 to take part in mine-laying activities off the coast of Norway before the Luftwaffe attacked.
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Engine Room Artificer 2nd Class Thomas Victor Andrews' date of death is given as 1st August 1940 when the crew of H.M. Submarine Narwhal failed to return.
