Ben Benson flew night fighters for almost the entire war. He joined No. 141 (‘Audacious’) Squadron in July 1940 and survived a brutal daylight raid on it. In October, his unit was converted into a night fighter squadron, achieving his first victory on the night of December 22-23 of the same year.
Ten months later, No. 141 Squadron switched to Beaufighters, and Benson began flying with radar operator Lewis Brandon. Air activity was low at the time, and their only victory was one Do 217 shot down and another disabled. They then moved to No. 157 Squadron, equipped with Mosquito aircraft, which initially performed defensive tasks and later invasion and bomber escort missions.
Night Engagement Over Denmark
On the night of September 11/12, 1944, Benson and Brandon were patrolling southeast Denmark when Lewis Brandon made contact: “There was contact. He was flying fast, but I was able to guide Ben onto him with little difficulty. We saw that it was a Junkers Ju 88, and it appeared to be steered by a German fighter beacon”.
Ben pointed the Mosquito’s nose slightly up and pulled back slightly. The Junkers flew into his sights, and he fired a four-second burst. We saw impacts and sparks reflecting off the base of the starboard wing.
The German aircraft banked sharply and lost speed, forcing Ben to climb to avoid a collision. Then a tongue of flame erupted from its right engine, the fire intensified, and we saw the aircraft crash to the ground.
Seconds later, Brandon made another contact, and another aircraft was shot down at close range. Upon returning to base, they found their Mosquito spattered with German engine oil and scratched by shrapnel.
A Distinguished Night Fighter Ace
Benson ended the war with ten aircraft destroyed, four disabled, and six V-1s (unmanned ‘Fau-1’ flying bombs) shot down. All victories, with the exception of the first, were achieved in conjunction with Brandon. Their last victim was an He 219, shot down on the night of January 5/6, 1945.