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Michael McLoughlin Dowding
30th July 1924 鈥� 26th December 1944

Michael McLoughlin Dowding was born in Highbury, London N5 on 30th July 1924. He was the eldest son of the family his two younger brothers being Anthony and Patrick. His father was born in Raewalpindi and fought in the army on the North West Frontier and in the Afghan wars. In the family tradition as eldest son he took the family name of McLoughlin.

Michael was educated at Highbury Vale C. of E. school (just along from Arsenal Football Club) and later at St. Ignatius College, Stamford Hill where he matriculated. Whilst at school he was good academically and at sport winning numerous cups for running. He was captain of the school football team.

Wartime encouraged all young men to volunteer for the armed forces and Michael became an RAFVR (volunteer reserve). Awaiting call up age, he worked for a short while in Barclays Bank in Potters Bar and as soon as he was eligible he became an officer cadet. With a good grasp of mathematics he was selected as a Navigator and as a service entrant he was accepted for Pembroke College, Cambridge.

Selected as a Pathfinder he did flying training in Canada and one of his great delights was to meet up with Dinah Shore (a famous US singing star and as you would say today a pop idol). Upon return to England Michael was attached to a Lincolnshire Pathfinder group stationed in Mepal, Lincs.. (A Pathfinder is one who flies in before the main group and marks out by flares etc, the places to be bombed by the main group that follows slightly afterwards at a much higher altitude). In those days the main force was a four engined bomber called a Lancaster with a crew of gunners, pilot and co-pilot, navigator and bomb aimer. The Navigator was a key member of crew as upon his accuracy the target raid was successful or otherwise for the main group. After each group of raids or 鈥渢ours鈥� the crews were stood down for a short break. Usually 25 sorties at most.

As the war was coming to it鈥檚 end, 鈥淏omber鈥� Harris in charge of Bomber command, to destroy German morale; had set out on mass 鈥�1,000 bomber鈥� raids. This did not necessarily mean one thousand planes but more than often well exceeded 600-700 with the pathfinders coming in first to light and mark out and other wings or groups following quickly thereafter ( no one wanted to be shot down or killed) coming in at various heights and angles. Thus timing and precision were essential as getting in and getting away quickly was the safety factor. On Boxing Day, 1944 we received at home in Winchmore Hill, north London a message that Mike was 鈥渕issing鈥� from the night raid and some months later after a check of prisoner of war camps by Red Cross that it was now 鈥渕issing presumed killed鈥�. During that time we had had a German POW come to our house as my mother, as a parent, felt that Heinz (his name) also had worried parents in Germany. The war ended in May 1945 and one of Mike鈥檚 crew ( a New Zealander rear gunner who had been a POW after the raid; visited us before going back home to inform us that as a rear gunner the tail plane was cut off by another bomber of a Canadian wing that either came in higher too early or they had left too late (split second timing). He had parachuted to safety in spite of all the anti-aircraft guns and it raining down bombs and had survived and been taken prisoner. The main bombing raids took place in industrial centres of Rhur/Rhineland around Cologne/Gelsenlkirchen. Some short time after the war we were notified that Michael鈥檚 remains (albeit scant with the crash and bombing) were buried in British Wargrave Rheinburg not far from Mannheim which we visited some years later to see fields with row upon row of white gravestones containing the remains of hundreds of young air crew.
May he rest in peace.

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