Archibald Allan
"Harry" Harrington

14/15 Mar 1944 18/19 June 1944 26/27 Sept 1944 29/30 Oct 1944 25/26 Nov 1944

1 Ju188 1 Ju88 1 Ju87 1 FW190 3 Ju88Gs

Destroyed Destroyed Destroyed Destroyed Destroyed

7 / 0 / 0

plus 1 unconfirmed or probable

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14/15 March - Lt. A.A. Harrington (USAAF) and Sgt. D.G. Tongue (RAF), who were on their way back to base after an uneventful patrol, saw some incendiaries, bomb bursts and searchlight beams. Although short of fuel, they proceeded to investigate and obtained a contact on a Hun. Showers of window and skilful evasive action made it difficult to retain the contact, but Tongue held on until Harrington sighted the target, a Ju.188. A short burst of 35 rounds from the 20 mm. cannons had spectacular effect. Strikes flashed on the cockpit and wing roots; a red glow appeared in the cockpit and almost immediately both engines burst into flames. The fire grew until it enveloped the whole centre section and a solid sheet of flame streamed back, two or three times the length of the aircraft. Large pieces of debris flew off and explosions erupted through the flames as the Junkers went down through the clouds, its course marked by a vivid glow. Suddenly there was a brilliant flash below, and then the darkness closed in. As the bomber went down Harrington flew around it noting the large black crosses on the fuselage and the swastika on the tail fin.

18/19 June - On 18 June the Squadron moved from Hunsdon to Zeals, near Warminster in south-western Wiltshire. Here it was closer to the Cotentin Peninsula and the western flank of the invasion area over which the Cougars did most of their work in the next two months. The first night at Zeals was marked by a pair of victories won almost simultaneously in the vicinity of Vire. Lt. Harrington and Sgt. Tongue were patrolling east and west along one beat south of the American lines when the G.C.I. controller put them on to a target. As they closed on their contact it divided into aircraft which broke away in opposite directions. From their movements Harrington suspected they were fitted with rearward searching radars. He pursued one, coming in to 400 feet before he could identify it as a Ju.88. Recognition was difficult because the aircraft had two large bombs mounted on external racks between the engines and fuselage. Satisfied that it was a Hun, Harrington moved in to 200 feet, pulled up the nose of the Mosquito and tripped his guns. No strikes were seen. Then suddenly the whole aircraft blew up in the air. One wing and engine tore away and went hurtling past the night fighter. Masses of smaller debris and burning oil splashed over it, puncturing some holes in the leading edge of a wing and smearing the fabric on wings and fuselage. Ten seconds after the wreckage disappeared into the void below there was a vivid explosion on the ground which lit up the Mosquito 10,000 feet above. Some moments later Harrington and Tongue saw a second aircraft crash and burn near the blazing wreckage of their victim.
The second e/a had been shot down by F/O G.T. Edwards and F/S W. Georges who were on patrol in the same area. Possibly it was the second of the two 88s that Harrington had stalked. Guided by the controller, the Mosquito crew were following one contact when another appeared nearer at hand. In one of its turns this "bogey" passed across a light patch in the northern sky and Edwards saw from the silhouette that it was a Ju.88. He got away a quick burst of 34 rounds, hitting the port engine and cockpit. They burst into flames. The Mosquito, breaking away to avoid a collision, passed through the slipstream of the bomber and Edwards, struggling to regain control, lost sight of his target as it peeled off in a vertical dive through a thin layer of cloud. Some moments later when he orbitted the area he saw two fires burning on the ground – his Junkers and Harrington's.

26/27 September - Three patrols were carried out from Amiens / Glisy on the first night (22nd / 23rd September) over the battle area from Liege north to Maastricht and Eindhoven. For four nights there was little to report. Lt. Harrington and P/O Tongue finally broke the calm on the 26th by destroying a Stuka, the first in a series of 25 victories won by the Cougars on the continent. At the beginning of their sortie, the crew had several futile chases, in the course of which they saw one bomber illuminated by a cluster of searchlights; then they were put onto another target at a very low height. While Tongue was trying to pick it up on his radar, Harrington noticed three bombs explode near the bank of a river, after which contact was obtained on a bogey, three miles distant, and well below the Mossie. Giving chase, the night fighter pursued its target down to 150 feet, despite the difficulty of keeping in touch at this low altitude through a series of hard turns. Presently the enemy pilot began to climb, enabling the Mosquito to close in and, after very careful study from less than 50 feet, identify the Hun as a Ju.87. Harrington then dropped back to 300 feet to open fire. With its undercarriage blown away, and the pilot perhaps dead at the controls, the Stuka turned slowly and started down. Two further bursts were delivered, the second striking all over the fuselage, following which the machine exploded on the ground, some 12 miles north of Aachen, "where it could be seen burning very nicely."

29/30 October - So the October nights slipped past, with little to record for operations except for rather frequent sightings of V.2s being launched against England. Before the month ended, however, the American-English team, Archie Harrington and Dennis Tongue, bagged their fourth Hun in a long, eight-minute chase over eastern Holland. Taking off from Glisy at 5 o’clock on 29 October, they patrolled over the Venlo area in company with another crew until it became day. Presently Harrington was sent northwest to St. Antonis where he encountered showers of "window" as well as concentrated and accurate flak. Finding no joy at low altitude, the Mosquito pilot began to climb and his navigator soon got a contact on a "bogey" which, unlike the lower Huns, was travelling at a good pace. As the range began to open, Harrington increased to full throttle, closing slowly at 340 m.p.h. The enemy aircraft started to let down in a succession of "steps", while the night fighter moved within visual range, identifying the Hun as an FW.190. Four brief bursts from close range smashed around the cockpit, knocking off "various debris". Thereupon the 190 turned on its back, plunging vertically into the ground where it burned fiercely.

25/26 November - The first victories from Lille/Vendeville more than atoned for almost four weeks of joyless patrols. Once before, in December 1943, a Cougar team had destroyed three enemy aircraft in a single sortie. Harrington and Tongue pulled the "hat trick" again on the night of 25 November. Taking off at 1740 hours, the crew did an uneventful patrol for well over an hour. The story can be told in the pilot's own words:
" I was finally handed over to Rejoice control and told of trade ahead between 10,000 and 15,000 feet. Then I was told of joy 15 miles to port and to steer 100 degrees. Contact obtained crossing to starboard above, range four miles. Closed fairly rapidly to two miles. Then target commenced moderate evasive action. Visual obtained at 4500 feet, height 16,000 feet. Closed right in and finally identified a Ju.88 night fighter with Ju.188 tail... Dropped back to approximately 600 feet and opened fire. Strikes seen in cockpit, engines, and wing roots, followed by explosion and debris. E/A diving very steeply, followed him on A.1. and visually. E/A was seen to strike the ground and burn. Our aircraft had been hit by debris as we fired, shaking aircraft badly... Position given by Rejoice as approximately at Muntz (north of Julich). Time 2008.”
"Climbed back up and Rejoice gave us another chase on vector of 280 degrees, head on, range 11 miles. At same time observer obtained a head-on collision contact, above at range of three miles. Did hard port orbit, and no joy. Continued orbit, searching and regained contact, hard over to port, on aircraft doing a hard port turn. apparently he was trying to intercept us. Target commenced very violent evasive action and increased speed, climbing, diving and turning. Closed very slowly to 4000 feet range and target did even more violent evasive, getting out to 6000 feet range. This lasted for nine to ten minutes. Visual obtained finally between 4000 and 3500 feet. Closed in very slowly at an A.S.I. 270, height 12,000 feet. Identified as ... another night fighter (Ju.88 with 188 tail). Dropped back to 5/600 feet, and opened fire. Strikes seen on cockpit, engines and wing roots, followed by explosions. E/A did a half roll and went to port, then became straight and level, finally going into a loop. It stalled at the top of the loop and went into a inverted spin. E/A seen to hit the deck with a large explosion, illuminating the houses in the vicinity ... Position given by Rejoice as ...near Jackerath (north of the first combat area). Time 2019.”
"Climbed back up and obtained two contacts. One to port, range three miles and one to starboard, range four miles. Asked Rejoice which one was hostile; advised to take our choice as both were hostile. Intercepted the one to port through moderate evasive action. The furthermost a/c came in head-on to starboard and above, appearing to intercept us. We continued interception, observer covering tail with night glasses in starboard turns as well as controlling interception. Visual finally obtained at 4500 feet. We closed in to about 75 feet and identified as Ju.88 with 188 tail. E/A still doing evasive action, suddenly throttled back and I narrowly escaped ramming him. Then I dropped back to about 300 feet and opened fire. Strikes seen in cockpit, on engines and wing roots. Debris flew off. E/A then started burning on port engine, fire spreading to cockpit and starboard engine. E/A went down in spiral dive to starboard. I followed down, taking pictures of him burning. E/A went into cloud and a few seconds later a very large explosion lit up the underside of the cloud and continued to burn fiercely ... Rejoice was unable to give me a definite fix as I was then off their tube, but approximate area was somewhere north around Hunxe. 11 Time 2026. I then did very violent evasive action myself, including hard orbits, as Rejoice seemed to think there might be someone on my tail ... I claim three Ju.88s destroyed".
All three aircraft were Ju.88 C-l night fighters, identifiable by a blister under the nose, and radar aerials projecting from the nose. Large black crosses could be seen under the wings and close to the engine nacelles. Harrington believed the enemy tactics were for two night fighters to fly in line astern, approximately two miles apart, the rear one covering the other. He and Tongue therefore concentrated on intercepting the tail-end Charlie. Throughout the chases they were held by the German ground radar and could hear the enemy controller over their radio telephone. No return fire was encountered in the combats, but the Mosquito was slightly damaged by flying debris.
Harrington and Tongue had previously destroyed four enemy aircraft and had been recommended for the DFC. Now, after their seventh joint victory, Harrington received the DSO and his navigator a Bar to the DFC. Harrington was also awarded the American DFC, and the Air Medal with several oak leaf clusters. He left the Squadron at the end of December, on transfer to a unit of the USAAF, but Dennis Tongue crewed up with a new pilot and remained with No. 410 until April 1945, adding another victory to his score. With eight confirmed kills he was the leading navigator/radar in the Squadron...
...During these weeks several tour-expired crews left the Squadron and newcomers were welcomed. In December Kearney, Hargrove and Harrington departed, followed by Snowdon, Dinsdale and Dunn early in 1945. Two old-timers, F/L Schultz and F/O Christie who had both won the DFC on their first tour, returned to the Cougars to start on a second tour which to be as brilliant as their first.

On these pages I use Hugh Halliday's extensive research (which includes info from numerous sources), newspaper articles via the Canadian Museum of Civilization Corporation (CMCC) as well as other sources both published and private