Blackpool held their monthly meeting on Tuesday which as usual was a well attended and well run affair.



Being chaired by Dave Blezzard and being treated to a very good speech
and trip through the ins and outs of how the human being changes after
being taken out of their natural habitats by Preston veteran Nationalist
Tony Bamber weres just two of the highlights, a third was the potato
pie served up during the interval!



A rare treat was saved for the second half when Blackpool organiser and
medal collector Brian Hunter gave an interesting insight into a set of
medals he had purchased many years ago from an ex serviceman in
Fleetwood,



All too often we see rows of medals without knowing any story behind them.



Below is a record of Ronald Batsons contribution towards the fight our
forefathers fought for our freedom and another reason we must never give
up the fight we find ourselves in today.



Thank you Mr Batson, a real life Dambuster, and thank you Brian Hunter for sharing this with us.

Ronald Batson. DFM

Air gunner.

Royal Air  Force Volunteer Reserve 1045069.

Batson completed a full tour with 97 squadron with Joe Mc Carthy as pilot before transfering to 617.

Raids.

 

Achen

Genoa.

Genoa.

Gardening

Genoa. ( returned early )

gardening (returned early )

Stuttgart.

Turin ( returned early )

Gardening.

Mannheim.

Turin.

Turin ( returned early )

Munich.

Duisberg.

Berlin.

Berlin.

Hamburg (returned early )

Cologne.

Turin.

Wilhemshaven.

Bremen.

Cologne.

St Nazaire.

Berlin.

Hamburg.

Nuremberg.

Munich.

Stuttgart.

Essen.

St Nazaire.

 

Gardening was mine-laying, usually in river mouths in France and Belgium.

Transferred to 617 23 march 1943 to train for operation Chastise, the dams raid.

37 missions with 617, and all crew retired as time expired.

Born Bishop Auckland Lived in Fleetwood for 20 years.