A warm welcome for RAF Flight Lieutenant William Reid, VC, at Baillieston Parish Church in 1944. Reid was born in Baillieston.
Bill Reid was awarded the Victoria Cross after successfully completing a bombing raid on Dusseldorf on the night of 3 November 1943, despite sustaining serious injuries and damage to his Lancaster bomber. The citation in the London Gazette of 14 December 1943 concluded: "Wounded in two attacks, Flight Lieutenant Reid showed superb courage and leadership in penetrating a further 200 miles into enemy territory to attack one of the most strongly defended targets in Germany. His tenacity and devotion to duty are beyond praise."
The air vice-marshall commanding the bomber group to which his squadron belonged visited Reid in hospital and asked "Why didn't you turn back?" He replied that the idea had simply not occurred to him. After recovering from his injuries, Reid returned to active duty.
Reference: Mitchell Library, Glasgow Collection, BA vol.3, p.21b
Reproduced with the permission of Glasgow City Council, Libraries Information and Learning
Keywords:
awards, Baillieston Parish Church, bombers, bombing, children, Lancaster bombers, medals, RAF pilots, Royal Air Force, Second World War, Victoria Cross, women
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