Crash of a Dornier DO.217E-4 off Terschelling: 4 killed

Date & Time: Mar 16, 1943 at 0152 LT
Type of aircraft:
Dornier DO.217
Operator:
Registration:
U5+RN
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Bombing
Survivors:
No
Site:
Lake, Sea, Ocean, River
Schedule:
Eindhoven - Eindhoven
MSN:
4258
YOM:
1941
Location:
Terschelling
Friesland
Country:
Netherlands
Region:
Europe
Crew on board:
4
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
4
Circumstances:
Crashed in unknown circumstances into the North Sea some 45 km west of Terschelling. All four crew members were killed.
Crew:
Uffz H. Gahlt, pilot,
Uffz K. Friese, observer,
Ogefr W. W. H. Sommer, radio operator,
Ogefr F.-J. Rohrer, air gunner.

Crash of a Dornier DO.217E-4 near Grimsby

Date & Time: Mar 15, 1943 at 2140 LT
Type of aircraft:
Dornier DO.217
Operator:
Registration:
U5+LP
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Bombing
Survivors:
Yes
Site:
Plain, Valley
Location:
Grimsby
Lincolnshire
Country:
United Kingdom
Region:
Europe
Crew on board:
4
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
0
Circumstances:
Engaged in an operation over England, the airplane was shot down by a British fighter and crashed south of Grimsby. All four crew members parachuted to safety and became PoW.
Crew:
Oblt H. Holzapfiel, pilot,
Obfw A. Kuepper,
Fw G. Stein,
Fw G. Doern.
Probable cause:
Shot down by a British fighter.

Crash of a Lockheed PV-1 Ventura I off Guernsey: 1 killed

Date & Time: Mar 15, 1943 at 1805 LT
Type of aircraft:
Lockheed PV-1 Ventura
Operator:
Registration:
AE742
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Bombing
Survivors:
Yes
Site:
Lake, Sea, Ocean, River
Schedule:
Methwold - Methwold
MSN:
4085
YOM:
1942
Location:
Guernsey
Channel Islands
Country:
United Kingdom
Region:
Europe
Crew on board:
4
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
1
Circumstances:
The airplane departed RAF Methwold at 1647LT to bomb Plaine Airfield (Saint-Brieuc) in Brittany. At 1755LT, it was damaged by enemy fire in the port engine and ditched into the sea off Guernsey at 1805LT. A crew was killed and three others became PoW.
Crew:
Sgt Edward Dennis Lloyd Critchett, pilot,
F/Sgt John Alfred Denyer,
Sgt George Alfred Targett,
Sgt Donald Henry Yorke, air gunner. †
Probable cause:
Shot down by enemy fire.

Crash of an Avro 683 Lancaster I at RAF Scampton

Date & Time: Mar 14, 1943 at 0610 LT
Type of aircraft:
Avro 683 Lancaster
Operator:
Registration:
W4201
Flight Phase:
Landing (descent or approach)
Flight Type:
Bombing
Survivors:
Yes
Site:
Airport (less than 10 km from airport)
Schedule:
Scampton – Scampton
Location:
Scampton AFB
Lincolnshire
Country:
United Kingdom
Region:
Europe
Crew on board:
7
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
0
Circumstances:
The airplane departed RAF Scampton at 1956LT on March 13 to lay mines in the Danzig Bay. It was badly shot about by a German fighter and crashed the following morning while landing at base. Three crew members were injured.
Crew:
F/O W. E. Jeavons, pilot,
Sgt B. G. Carter,
P/O D. W. Warwick,
Sgt R. E. H. Hood-Morris,
P/O R. E. Gibbons,
Sgt G. Cooper,
Sgt J. B. Hughes, air gunner.
Probable cause:
Badly shot about by a German fighter.

Crash of a Vickers 417 Wellington III off Norderney: 5 killed

Date & Time: Mar 14, 1943 at 0351 LT
Type of aircraft:
Vickers 417 Wellington III
Operator:
Registration:
BK296
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Bombing
Survivors:
No
Site:
Lake, Sea, Ocean, River
Schedule:
Middleton Saint George - Middleton Saint George
Location:
Norderney
Lower Saxony
Country:
Germany
Region:
Europe
Crew on board:
5
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
5
Circumstances:
The airplane departed RAF Middleton Saint George at 0003LT to lay mines off the Frisian Islands. It was shot down by a German fighter and crashed into the sea some 8 km north of Norderney Island. All five crew members were killed.
Crew:
Sgt Charles Harrison Tidy, pilot,
P/O John Donald MacFarlane, navigator,
Sgt George Robert Douglas Hall, bomb aimer,
Sgt John Alexander Corbett, air gunner,
Sgt Harold Reddy, air gunner.
Probable cause:
Shot down by a German fighter.

Crash of an Avro 683 Lancaster III off Rønne: 7 killed

Date & Time: Mar 14, 1943 at 0010 LT
Type of aircraft:
Avro 683 Lancaster
Operator:
Registration:
ED494
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Bombing
Survivors:
No
Site:
Lake, Sea, Ocean, River
Schedule:
Waddington - Waddington
Location:
Rønne (Bornholm Island)
Hovedstaden
Country:
Denmark
Region:
Europe
Crew on board:
7
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
7
Circumstances:
The airplane departed RAF Waddington at 2008LT on March 13 to lay mines in the Spinach area off Gdynia. It was shot down by the German Flak and crashed into the Baltic Sea west of Rønne. All seven crew members were killed.
Crew:
W/O Howard Clark Lewis, pilot,
Sgt Douglas Cowie, flight engineer,
Sgt Raymond Leon Laycock, navigator,
Sgt John Ian Mitchell, bomb aimer,
Sgt Reginald Charles Hitchcock, wireless operator,
Sgt Richard Frederick Cunningham, air gunner,
Sgt John Hitchin Howorth, air gunner.
Probable cause:
Shot down by the German Flak.

Crash of a Junkers JU.88A-4 near Murmansk: 3 killed

Date & Time: Mar 14, 1943
Type of aircraft:
Junkers JU.88
Operator:
Registration:
4D+IB
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Bombing
Survivors:
No
Site:
Plain, Valley
MSN:
2298
Location:
Murmansk
Murmansk oblast
Country:
Russia
Region:
Asia
Crew on board:
3
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
3
Circumstances:
Shot down by the Soviet Flan and crashed near Murmansk. All three crew members were killed.
Crew:
Oblt Helmut Lützow, pilot,
Ofw Ludwig Kolb, radio operator,
Uffz Edmund Miehstein, air gunner.

Crash of a Junkers JU.88C-6 into the Bay of Biscay: 3 killed

Date & Time: Mar 13, 1943 at 2252 LT
Type of aircraft:
Junkers JU.88
Operator:
Registration:
C9+FU
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Bombing
Survivors:
No
Site:
Lake, Sea, Ocean, River
Location:
Bay of Biscay
World
Country:
World
Region:
World
Crew on board:
3
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
3
Circumstances:
While attacking a RAF Wellington registered BK516, the airplane was shot down by the Polish crew and crashed into the Bay of Biscay as well as the Wellington. All three crew members were killed.
Crew:
Uffz Karl Franz, pilot,
Gefr Dalbor, mechanic,
Uffz Theil, radio operator.
Probable cause:
Shot down by a British Wellington.

Crash of a Vickers 417 Wellington III into the Bay of Biscay: 5 killed

Date & Time: Mar 13, 1943 at 2252 LT
Type of aircraft:
Vickers 417 Wellington III
Operator:
Registration:
BK516
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Bombing
Survivors:
No
Site:
Lake, Sea, Ocean, River
Schedule:
Hemswell - Hemswell
Location:
Bay of Biscay
World
Country:
World
Region:
World
Crew on board:
5
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
5
Circumstances:
The airplane departed RAF Hemswell at 1843LT to lay mines off Saint-Nazaire. Cruising over the Bay of Biscay at an altitude of 4,000 metres, it was shot down by a German fighter and crashed into the sea. All five crew members were killed.
Crew:
Sgt Tadeusz Kuzminski, pilot,
F/Sgt Karol Jerzy Kramarczyk, navigator,
Sgt Stanisław Napora, wireless operator,
Sgt Atanazy Papkow, air gunner,
Sgt Franciszek Polom, air gunner.
Probable cause:
Shot down by a German fighter.

Crash of a Handley Page H.P.57 Halifax II at RAF Leeming

Date & Time: Mar 13, 1943 at 0047 LT
Type of aircraft:
Handley Page H.P.57 Halifax II
Operator:
Registration:
DT790
Flight Phase:
Landing (descent or approach)
Flight Type:
Bombing
Survivors:
Yes
Site:
Airport (less than 10 km from airport)
Schedule:
Leeming - Leeming
Location:
Leeming AFB
North Yorkshire
Country:
United Kingdom
Region:
Europe
Crew on board:
7
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
0
Circumstances:
The airplane departed RAF Leeming at 1916LT on March 12 on an operation to Essen. After being hit by the German Flak, the crew was able to return to base and while on finals both port engines failed, causing the Halifax to yaw violently and crash near the airfield. All seven crew members escaped uninjured.
Crew:
F/O C. O. Hatle, pilot,
Sgt W. G. Kapuscinski,
F/O A. M. Stockdale,
Sgt S. F. Osmond,
P/O W. E. Rowland,
Sgt H. Richmond,
Sgt A. A. Tschantre, air gunner.
Probable cause:
Failure of both left engines on final approach.
Subscribe to Bombing