Flight navigator Jack is remembered

AFTER saving a memorial board from storage two locals have researched the lives of the nearly 100 former pupils of Holgate Grammar School who lost their lives in World War Two.

The Chronicle is proud to be able to share the tales of these brave soldiers who made the ultimate sacrifice, and keep the memory of them alive.

This series will lead to the formal re-commemoration of the memorial board on November 9, which is now safely homed within Shaw Lane Sports Club.

Flight navigator John Wreakes suffered a mysterious death when the wing of his plane suddenly fell off during what should have been a routine exercise.

Raised on Wilthorpe Avenue in town centre, Jack was the only son of Fred and Doris Wreakes and comes from a family of military men.

His father was a veteran of World War One where he was wounded at Passchendaele, though he never openly discussed his experiences.

As a child Jack was known to be funny, and would repeatedly make jokes with his school friends about how his surname made it sound like he must constantly smell.

During the war he joined the RAF where he served with the 420 Squadron of the Royal Canadian Airfoce aboard a Vickers Wellington III.

It was in the afternoon of March 1, 1943 when his team took flight for an apparently normal navigational exercise in North Yorkshire – witnesses saw them to be flying perfectly when the port wing of the plane collapsed, causing the aircraft to plummet.

Due to the speed of the incident, there was no opportunity for the team to escape and all five of the crew perished in the crash – Jack was only 21 at the time.

A later investigation of the crash revealed that a failure in the joints had caused the malfunction – an entirely avoidable incident that took the life of five dedicated servicemen.

The investigation into his life was aided by his niece Sue Nuttall, the daughter of Jack’s only sibling Joan, who kindly provided Ian and Melvyn with photographs and letters from Jack.

She told the Chronicle: “It’s really good this has gone back up – mum would be amazed if she was still alive to see it.

“It’s important that we’re still remembering these people who could easily be forgotten.”