Howes, Thomas Edward White (Flight Lieutenant, b.1922 - d.2018)

Collection relating to the Second World War service of 404900 Flight Lieutenant Thomas Edward White Howes DFC, No. 70 and No. 104 Squadron (RAF), Australia, Libya, Egypt, Italy and Crete, 1942-1994.

Collection consists of:
Wallet 1 - Folder 1:
1 x blue felt-covered “Royal Air Force Airman’s Service and Pay Book”, with “Officer’s Pay Allowances Book” stamped on the over. Rather than an actual book, this is a pouch containing 18 individual sheets relating to pay periods, spanning the period February 1942 to December 1943.

Wallet 1 - Folder 2:
3 x small grids showing areas navigated over Australia and New Guinea;
1 x larger version of the same grids;
1 x partially used cheque book form Lloyds Bank with “F/O Howes” written on the cover;
1 x calling card for an Edgar Barbara Camilleri;
2 x Italian identity documents used by Howes during the War;
4 x photographs including 2 x group photographs of Howes’ first flight crew, 1 x image of a small supply vessel tied up next to a larger vessel, and 1 x image of the burnt out Vickers Wellington fuselage following being attacked and a rough landing on 26 June 1942 on a transport vehicle, with an intact Wellington in the background (annotated to verso). The latter image has been double exposed, with a faint exposure of a Messerschmitt BF109 (likely an ‘F’ sub-variant);

Wallet 2 - Folder 1:
48 x navigator’s logs for individual flights, and 2 x copies of a flight report relating to being attacked on 26 June 1942. The flights are largely based with Nos. 70 and 104 squadrons in North Africa, with missions listed flying over Crete, Libya, Italy, and Egypt; and
3 x blank ‘navigation log’ page (one of similar style to those filled in, and two of slightly different style).

Wallet 2 - Folder 2:
1 x green, felt-covered “Navigator’s Log Book” folder cover, which the contents of folder 1 were originally loosely held. Inside the cover are a rusted Gillette razor blade, and a pencil in a holder on the back cover. The interior of the cover also contains navigational guides, including those specific to the Vickers Wellington Mk 3 and Mk 10, and conversion charts for metric and imperial measurements.

Wallet 3 - Folder 1:
34 x miscellaneous documents relating to the Second World War service and post-war flying QANTAS career of Flight Lieutenant Howes including items spanning the period 1942 to 1994. These including items such as: discharge certificates, blank QANTAS navigational flight logs, medal ribbons, receipts, and letters.