Description
Distinguished Flying Medal, GVI, 1817165 Flight Sergeant Thomas “Tommy” Michael Lappin, No 7 Squadron, Pathfinder Force, Royal Air Force.
Officially engraved: “1817165 F/Sgt T.M. Lappin. R.A.F.”
Announced in the London Gazette 22nd May 1945, for flying 43 Operational Sorties, over 210.25 Flying Hours as a Wireless Operator with No 7 Squadron.
Citation reads:
“This Non Commissioned Officer has now completed 43 Operational Sorties against the enemy, 15 of these in the Pathfinder Force and 12 in a marker crew.
Flight Sergeant Lappin has always displayed skill and the ability of the highest standard of his extreme coolness and courage have contributed to a large extent in the number of successful sorties carried out by the crew of which he is a member.
His unselfish devotion to duty, enthusiasm and cheerful tackling of any difficultly whatsoever is highly commendable.”
The award of his DFM was also mentioned back home in the Belfast News Letter of 22nd May 1945 reading:
“PORTADOWN MAN’S DFM
Flight Sergeant Thomas Michael Lappin, RAFVR who was born in Portadown in 1921, has been awarded the DFM for the ‘utmost fortitude, courage and devotion to duty’ in operations against the enemy.
Flight Sergeant Lappin, who now lives at Stechford, Birmingham, was a plasterer before he enlisted in 1942. He is a Wireless Operator.”
An identified photograph of him with the Squadron in battle dress can be found at the International Bomber Command Centre Digital Archive at this link:
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/collections/document/46508
Another photo: https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/collections/document/46653
There is also an excellent article with 2 photographs of him and his crew, from an Article on Raf-Pathfinders.com which can be found here and the main photograph is from this article, with credit to RAF Pathfinders Archive who uploaded this photograph.
https://raf-pathfinders.com/7-squadron-2/boden-crew-and-john-ottewell/
In the second photograph of their crew suited ready to fly, he is the 2nd from the left.
His obituary in the Portadown Times, 31st January 1997 with photo:
“EX-RAF PILOT WAS AWARDED FLYING MEDAL
Former Portadown Man and Ex-Raf Pilot Tommy Lappin has died in England, aged 72. Mr Lappin was born in Bridge Street and as a young man played football for the Parkmount Football Club.
In 1941, at the age of 19, he left Portadown to join the RAF and fight in the Second World War.
He flew with the Bomber Command before joining the Pathfinders and in all took part in 60 operational flights.
His contribution to the war effort was recognised when he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Medal and Bar.
With the end of the war, Mr Lappin was demobbed in 1946 and worked at the Rover Car Factory in England until his retirement.
He was married, with children. Mr Lappin’s last visit home was a few years ago, when he attended his mother’s funeral.
He is survived by his brother Frank Lappin of Kernan Grove, Portadown.”
The WW2 service of No 7 Squadron in brief from this time in the unit:
“No 7 Squadron was transferred to the Pathfinder Force in August 1942, with the job of finding and marking targets for the Main Force of Bomber Command Bombers.
The squadron was re-equipped with the Avro Lancaster from 11th May 1943, flying its first mission with the Lancaster on 12th July 1943.
It continued in the Pathfinder Role until the end of the war in Europe, It flew its last bomber mission on 25th April 1945 against Wangerooge off the Northwestern Coast of Germany, and dropped food to starving civilians in the Netherlands in May.
It was planned to to relocate to the Tiger Force in the Far East for air attacks against Japan, but the war ended before the move was due. In total No 7 Squadron carried out 5,060 operational sorties with loss of 165 aircraft.”
