ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 78721
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| Date: | Wednesday 30 August 1944 |
| Time: | 03:58 LT |
| Type: |  Avro Lancaster Mk I |
| Owner/operator: | 101 Sqn RAF |
| Registration: | LM479 |
| MSN: | SR-F |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 8 / Occupants: 8 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Dejbjerg, Skjern, Midtjylland -
 Denmark
|
| Phase: | Combat |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | RAF Ludford Magna |
| Stettin |
Took off From RAF Ludford Magna at 21:30 on ABC duties. Came down near Dejbjerg after being attacked by a night fighter, 3 km SE from the small town of Lem, Denmark. All are buried in Dejbjerg Churchyard. Plt Off Cousin was the specialist operator. At 36 and 38 respectively, Sgt Gibson and Sgt Stewart were well over the average age of Bomber Command aircrew,
Crew
Fg Off Thomas Foster, pilot, RCAF.
Fg Off Samuel Albert Mackenzie, RCAF.
Plt Off Cyril Cousin, RAF.
Plt Off Hubert Joseph Linn, RCAF.
WO William Owen, RAF.
Flt Sgt. Alfred Reid Chalmes, RCAF.
Sgt. George Frederick Gibson, RAF.
Sgt. Andrew Stewart, RAF.
When the German Wehrmacht partially had dug the killed airmen down on the crash site at Dejbjerg Kjærgård vicar Hans Pedersen asked a German Hauptmann (Captain) in Skjern for permission to give the airmen a Christian and decent burial. The German officer´s view was that the RAF airmen just had had the burial suitable to them.
Very angry – and very sorrowful – the vicar then announced that he on behalf of the Danish church would see to that the airmen could have a Christian burial.
The sheriff in Dejbjerg then called the police commissioner in Ringkøbing who arranged that people from the Civil Defence lead by Captain Kisbye came to the site with spades, forks, gasmasks and coffins. The bodies of the 8 airmen were laid in 4 coffins, which then were taken to Dejbjerg Churchyard. Here people from the resistance movement had dug a big common grave.
At sunset on 14 September, 1944 vicar Hans Pedersen then held the funeral attended by many people of the parish, who had brought beautiful flowers – and by the police commissioner from Ringkøbing. The singing of hymns was strong and mighty, and all were very moved, when the vicar officiated at the graveside ceremony by throwing earth 3 times on each of the 4 coffins.
As the Wehrmacht got wind of the illegal burial the vicar, the sheriff and the chairman of the parish council were taken to interrogation at the Germans in Stauning. However, they were released again after some days.”
*Oblt Rudolf Szardenings (5./NJG3) claimed a four engined aircraft over Dejbjerg NW of Skjern (NR3) 3,200 meters at 03:58. This would be his 9th kill.
Sources:
http://www.airmen.dk/p371.htm
- Air Britain: RAF Aircraft LA100 - LZ999, published 1991
Royal Air Force bomber Command Losses of the Second World War 1944 Page 404.
http://www.aircrewremembered.com/thomas-foster.html
*Nachtjagd War Diaries Volume Two.
http://www.flensted.eu.com/1944129.shtml
http://members.shaw.ca/johnchalmers/LM479/
Google Maps
History of this aircraft
Other occurrences involving this aircraft
| 3 November 1943 | DV265 | 101 Sqn RAF | 5 | Ratingen area, Nordrhein-Westfalen |  |
w/o |
| 4 November 1944 | NF936 | 101 Sqn RAF | 8 | Gahlensche Straße street, Hamme, Bochum, Nordrhein-Westfalen | |
w/o |
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 14-Oct-2010 07:25 | Masen63 | Added |
| 14-Oct-2010 09:38 | Masen63 | Updated [Date] |
| 13-Oct-2011 07:48 | KRAUThunter | Updated [Location, Source, Narrative] |
| 26-Dec-2011 05:54 | Uli Elch | Updated [Aircraft type, Registration, Cn] |
| 26-Dec-2011 05:56 | Uli Elch | Updated [Registration] |
| 27-Dec-2011 05:48 | Uli Elch | Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Location, Phase, Departure airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 28-Dec-2011 14:33 | Uli Elch | Updated [Aircraft type] |
| 05-Jul-2016 16:27 | Red Dragon | Updated [Operator, Location, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 09-Oct-2018 05:27 | Nepa | Updated [Operator, Operator] |
| 18-Jun-2021 17:19 | TigerTimon | Updated [Time, Location, Source] |
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