Alec Cousins was born in 1923 in Maidenhead, Berkshire, only son of Frederick and Bertha Cousins.

He was in the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve as a Flight Sergeant, Service No. 1321669 as an Air Bomber (or bomb aimer) in Bomber Command’s 35 Squadron, part of the Pathfinder Force, based at RAF Graveley, Cambridgeshire.

On the afternoon of 24 December 1944, he was one of seven crew members on board Lancaster PB 366, one of 10 aircraft of 35 Squadron bound for Germany, to attack the Nippes Marshalling Yard in Cologne.

The squadron’s Operations Record Book recorded “Lancaster PB366 crashed on take-off at Low Farm, Paxton, about 1/2 mile south of the aerodrome at RAF Graveley.  All members of the crew were killed.  Pilot lost control on take-off while in fog conditions due to faulty instrument flying; aircraft caught fire on impact with trees”.

Alec was 21 years old when he tragically lost his life.

He is buried in Maidenhead; his Commonwealth War Graves Commission headstone is placed within his parents’ grave, and alongside his Grandmother’s grave.

You can see his entry on our Losses Database here

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