Sergeant Patrick Frederick Butler: A Detailed Biography
Early Life and Family
Patrick Frederick Butler was born on 24 December 1922 in Islington, London, England, during the post-First World War recovery period.[1] He was the son of Ralph John Butler, a former soldier in the Royal Berkshire Regiment, and Margaret Marsh Chidwick, daughter of a marine from Dover.[1] Baptised on 3 January 1923 in Islington, Patrick grew up in a working-class family amid the Great Depression’s hardships and interwar social changes, residing in Islington by 1922.[1] No records indicate siblings, a spouse, or children, reflecting his young age at death.[1]
This London upbringing shaped a resilient youth who reached adulthood as the Second World War erupted in 1939, turning 16 that year.[1] Family military ties, via his father’s service, likely influenced Patrick’s path.[1] Genealogical sources like Ancestry.co.uk confirm his birth registration in Islington (Q4 1922, Vol. 1B, p. 358).[1]
Military Service
Enlisting in the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve after his 18th birthday around 1940-1941 at Euston recruiting office, Patrick trained as an Air Gunner—a role demanding sharp reflexes and mechanical skill.[1][2] Assigned to No. 75 Squadron (NZ), RAF Bomber Command—a New Zealand-manned unit reformed in 1940 with RNZAF aircrews—he served from RAF Mepal, Cambridgeshire.[1][3] The squadron’s Māori motto, Ake ake kia kaha (“For ever and ever be strong”), symbolised its crews’ spirit on night raids, minelaying (“gardening”), and SOE drops.[1][4]
By 1944, Patrick was Mid-Upper Gunner (Service No. 1384944) on Short Stirling III EF137 (AA-E), a seven-man heavy bomber crewed with Pilot F/Sgt Mauson Lammas (RNZAF NZ421728), Navigator F/Sgt Douglas William Vaughan (RNZAF NZ429046), Air Bomber F/Sgt Robert Bailey (RNZAF NZ429072), Wireless Operator Sgt William Frederick Harrison (RAFVR 1396448), Flight Engineer Sgt Edwin Henry Thomas (RAFVR 1811856), and Rear Gunner Sgt Ivor Larson (RCAF R.192316).[1][3][4] Stirling crews faced high risks from night fighters and flak, with 75 Squadron suffering heavy losses—over 1,100 New Zealanders killed.[1][3] Detailed operations logged on 75nzsquadron.wordpress.com.[3]
Circumstances of Death
On 23 April 1944, EF137 took off from Mepal for a minelaying operation in Kiel Bay, part of 114 RAF bombers targeting five Baltic areas under two-moonlight conditions—highly hazardous due to visibility aiding German night fighters.[1][4][3] Five 75 Squadron Stirlings laid mines; EF137 was intercepted over Danish airspace near Vemmens (Vemmenæs), Tasinge Island, Fyn, crashing in flames at 23:15-23:20 hrs after disintegrating mid-air, killing all seven crew.[1][4][3][5] Eyewitnesses noted the empennage falling separately into shallow waters; probable attacker: Oberfeldwebel Rudolf Frank (3./NJG 3).[4][5]
This “gardening” mission disrupted Kriegsmarine shipping, but five bombers were lost that night from 75 Squadron and others.[3][6] Crash details corroborated by Danish sites like flensted.eu.com and airmen.dk.[4][7] Bomber Command’s minelaying sank 717 enemy vessels (688,153 tons), 40% of total sinkings.[8]
Burial and Commemoration
Recovered bodies received military honours burial on 1 May 1944 by a German chaplain, attended by locals, in Aabenraa (Åbenrå) Cemetery, Jutland, Denmark—Allied Military Plot, Row 4, Grave 1.[1][4][3] Patrick’s headstone reads: “1384944 SERGEANT P.F. BUTLER AIR GUNNER ROYAL AIR FORCE 23RD APRIL 1944,” with RAF badge and cross; CWGC maintains it (CWGC record).[1][7] The plot holds 147 WWII airmen burials.[1]
Commemorated on Find a Grave (ID 12725829), 75 Squadron rolls, and Menin Gate-like memorials; Danish locals tended graves pre-liberation.[1][4] ForcesWarRecords and AircrewRemembered.com archive crew details.[9]
Legacy and Descendants
At 21, unmarried Sergeant Butler embodied Bomber Command’s sacrifice—over 55,000 lost, many on obscure missions like Kiel Bay.[1][8] No descendants noted; his story, linking London roots to international crews, endures via digital archives, 75nzsquadron.wordpress.com, and RNZAF heritage.[1][3] Ake ake kia kaha honours his generation’s resolve.[1]
Danish memorials at Tasinge recall the crew. His brief life reflects Allied air war’s cost and triumph. [1]
Sources
[1] Individual-Report-for-Patrick-Frederick-Butler.pdf
[2] M. Lammas crew 26.3.44 † | 75(nz)squadron https://75nzsquadron.wordpress.com/m-lammas-crew-26-3-44-%E2%80%A0/
[3] B – 75(nz)squadron https://75nzsquadron.wordpress.com/b/
[4] Stirling III EF137 crashed near Vemmenæs east of the island of … http://www.flensted.eu.com/1944057.shtml
[5] RNZAF – Allied Losses and Incidents: All Commands https://aircrewremembered.com/AlliedLossesIncidents/?s=300&q=&qand=RNZAF&exc1=&exc2=&search_type=exact&search_only=
[6] April 1944 | 75(nz)squadron https://75nzsquadron.wordpress.com/april-1944/
[7] Patrick Frederick Butler – Airmen.dk https://www.airmen.dk/a113119.htm
[8] Gardening | Ted Church – Tail End Charlie https://tailendcharlietedchurch.wordpress.com/operations/gardening-mine-laying/
[9] Allied Losses and Incidents: All Commands – Aircrew Remembered https://aircrewremembered.com/AlliedLossesIncidents/?s=50&q=75sqn&qand=&exc1=&exc2=&search_type=exact&search_only=
[10] Vaughan D – International Bomber Command Centre https://losses.internationalbcc.co.uk/loss/228851/
[11] Stirling bomber crash in Denmark during WWII – Facebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/2365300344/posts/10162938298620345/
[12] Short Stirling – CASPIR Serial Search https://caspir.warplane.com/aircraft/serial-search/aircraft-no/200001563
[13] Short Stirling III (EF137 AA-E) on a mission to Frisian Islands on … https://ww2history.eu/air-force-operations/airplanes-allies-and-axis-lost/stirling/17423-EF1361943-09-09/next-listing
[14] Minelaying on the night of 21/22 May 1944 – Airwar over Denmark http://www.flensted.eu.com/1944148.shtml
[15] Lance Sergeant Frederick Patrick Butler – A Street Near You https://astreetnearyou.org/person/80067/Lance-Sergeant-Frederick-Patrick-Butler
[16] RNZAF – Allied Losses and Incidents: All Commands https://aircrewremembered.com/AlliedLossesIncidents/?s=1150&q=&qand=RNZAF&exc1=&exc2=&search_type=exact&search_only=
[17] T | 75(nz)squadron https://75nzsquadron.wordpress.com/t/
[18] Gardening Operations (dropping sea mines). https://75nzsquadronremembered.wordpress.com/gardening-operations-dropping-sea-mines/
[19] RAF 166 Squadron https://www.raf166squadron.com/166%20Squadron%20Personnelsearchablerevised.htm
[20] Tucked between steep cliffs and winding roads, Jøssingfjord may … https://www.facebook.com/kiwisflythecoop/posts/tucked-between-steep-cliffs-and-winding-roads-j%C3%B8ssingfjord-may-seem-like-just-an/1546310496735482/
[21] March 1944 | 75(nz)squadron – WordPress.com https://75nzsquadron.wordpress.com/march-1944/