Harry Aspinall

Harry Aspinall was born in 1916 and served as an RAF air gunner, later recorded with No. 61 Squadron. The IBCC Digital Archive holds a small collection relating to him, including his record of service from June 1940 to April 1944, and identifies him as a DFM recipient. That survival of service material is valuable: for many airmen the public record is little more than a casualty entry, but Aspinall’s papers help connect the man to his operational path.

Aspinall was killed on 23 April 1944, aged 27. The IBCC collection describes him as serving as an air gunner with 61 Squadron, one of Bomber Command’s Lancaster squadrons, at the time of his death. He is commemorated by the CWGC and in the IBCC archive as part of the human record behind the bomber offensive. His story is a case where a family-held service record, digitised by IBCC, adds context to the official award and casualty trail.