97/Reilly Crew: Gibson, accident notes
Name/Title
97/Reilly Crew: Gibson, accident notesEntry/Object ID
2022.1.429Description
Ronald Gibson, Flight Engineer, 97 SquadronContext
Ronnie Gibson was extremely seriously injured in the Reilly crash of 5 May 1943. He suffered a fractured skull, facial lacerations and multiple fractures after being thrown through the window of his Lancaster. These are his short notes about his medical treatment. He was admitted immediately to RAF Hospital Ely. On 15 May he was transferred to St Hughes Hospital, Oxford, which specialised in head trauma. His transfer and an operation took place on the same day, so his condition must have been critical. He did not start walking again until 8 July 1943, still with a plaster for his leg fractures. Thereafter he has second plaster, which apparently came off on 14 September 1943. Thereafter, although he does not mention it, he would have gone to a rehabilitation centre like The Leas at Hoylake. Jeremy Hargreaves: "He had a plate fitted to his skull and another to his sternum along with numerous fractures. It was a standing joke that he had to carry x-rays with him when travelling abroad in the early days as he would set off the alarms in the airport. He lived a long life living with his two maiden aunts in Clitheroe during his recuperation until their deaths. He never married and worked in the aerospace industry until retirement." Information and donated collection from Jeremy Hargreaves, 2022.Collection
97 Squadron, RAF Medical Services, YGIB: RONNIE GIBSONCategory
QAR: Unpublished memoirs, translations, manuscripts, notes