Notes
Leslie William John King, known as Bill, was born on 24 November 1913, the son of Emily and William King, a laboratory assistant. He was employed by Worcester College as a library clerk.
Bill King enlisted in the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve at RAF Uxbridge in September 1939, and initially trained as an engine fitter on ground crew. By mid-1942 he had risen to the rank of Sergeant, qualified as a flight engineer, and was posted to 57 Squadron based at RAF Scampton in Lincolnshire. He was promoted to flight sergeant and took part in the low-level raid on the factory at Le Creusot on 17 October 1942, during which he was seriously wounded when a bird strike shattered the windscreen of his aircraft. He underwent treatment in hospital until his return to operations in January 1943.
Bill King was commissioned as a Pilot Officer on 9 May 1943 and by September that year had completed 29 missions with 57 Squadron. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross on 22 October 1943. He was promoted to Flying Officer on 9 November 1943. On the 14 November 1943 he joined 617 (Dambusters) Squadron at RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire, having been personally requested by Wing Commander Leonard Cheshire.
On 24 June 1944 Bill King and his crew took off from RAF Woodhall Spa in Lincolnshire for an attack on the V2 rocket launch site at Wizernes in France. During their bombing run the aircraft was hit by two flak bursts, killing Flight Lieutenant Bill King instantly. He was 30 years old.
Bill King is buried at Longuenesse Souvenir Cemetery in France, and commemorated on the war memorial at Worcester College, Oxford.