Squadron Leader John Crampton DFC AFC (21 August 1921 – 12 June 2010) was a British pilot who conducted spy flights into the Soviet Union in the early 1950s.
The Halifax squadrons flew their last bombing operation on 25 April 1945 when they pounded the heavy gun emplacements on Wangerooge Island, which guarded the entrance to the key port of Bremen.
[1] In the early postwar years, Crampton transitioned from piston-engined bombers to jet fighters, piloting the Gloster Meteor as part of 12 Group at RAF Horsham St.
Based at RAF Sculthorpe, the aircraft were tasked with flying deep level reconnaissance missions over the Soviet Union to gather electronic and photographic intelligence.
[citation needed] Initially, Squadron Leader Micky Martin of Dambusters fame was chosen to lead the operations but he failed a mandatory high altitude pressurisation test and Crampton was selected instead.