Just after bombing Bois de Cassan, Halifax "S- Sugar", piloted by Flying Officer R. H. Simpson, was hit by flak which slightly wounded the bomb- aimer and disabled Sugar's steering gear. After an unsuccessful attempt to repair the broken rudder- rods with aerial wire, it was found that the gunners, Sgt. O. M. Brown and R. E. Budd, could help to control the aircraft by manipulating the rudder controls. Through this unusual bit of pilot-gunner co- operation, "S-Sugar" was brought back to England. Deciding not to press his luck further by
attempting to land this way, the captain ordered a bale-out, which was carried out successfully. This example of cool thinking and close crew co-operation earned an immediate D.F.C. for Simpson and D.F.M.s for Brown and Budd.
  August 11th, 1944 -mark that as a most memorable date in the history of the Porcupine Squadron. The occasion was an investiture held at Leeming, wherein His Majesty King George VI officiated personally. Accompanied by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, Princess Elizabeth, and Princess Margaret, the King first made a tour of the aircraft and chatted with several of the crew members. Then came the investiture. His Majesty pinned the D.F.C. on Pilot Officer H. G. McVeigh, Flt. Lt. D. Brown, R.A.F., Sqn. Ldr. H. T. Patterson, and Flying Officer G. B. Sharman, R.A.F., and the D.F.M. on Flt. Sgt. A. R. Phillips, R.A.F.
Two obviously successful raids were carried out on 14 and 15 August 1944. On the former attack the Porkies made life miserable for the German forces attempting to escape from the Falaise pocket. The specific aiming-point was the village of Bons Tassily. Early crews were able to bomb visually, guided by precise marking and a calm and deliberate master bomber. Later arrivals bombed the centre of the smoke and dust as requested by him. It was a fairly safe bet that the village of Bons Tassily was, for all military intents and purposes, wiped out.
 The attack on the 15th was part of a large-scale smash at airfields in the Low Countries. The Porkies interrupted the lunch-hour of Luftwaffe personnel stationed at Soesterberg, Holland, where the first crew bombed at 12:02. As visibility was excellent, this attack was another answer to the bomb-aimer's prayer. The airfield and practically everything that went with it took a fearful pounding. Among the installations hit were an ammunition dump, the control tower, S.H.Q. buildings, armament workshops, fuel dumps, and dispersal areas - plus, of course, the airfield and its runways. Three of the squadron's operations in the next ten days were mining-trips, and one was very costly. The area being mined the night of the 16th had the innocent code name, "Forget-me-not"; but everyone knew that this meant Kiel Harbour, a hot spot on any type of operation. Thirteen aircraft took off; ten returned. One of the missing Hallies - "P-Peter"-was manned by a crew of veterans all of whom had completed 25 or more sorties.When over the Island of Fyen, east of Denmark, it was attacked from below and astern by a fighter which set it afire in the port wing-root area. The fire could not be extinguished, and the aircraft, now in a steep dive, had to be abandoned.The navigator, Flying Officer C. H. Gill, and the rear gunner, Flying Officer P. E. "Phil" Marchildon (formerly a star pitcher with the Philadelphia Athletics), were in the water for about three hours before being picked up by a Danish patrol boat. They were eventually handed over to the Germans.