ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 203257
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| Date: | Thursday 7 May 1942 |
| Time: | 02:53 |
| Type: |  Vickers Wellington Mk IV |
| Owner/operator: | 460 Sqn RAAF |
| Registration: | Z1413 |
| MSN: | UV-X |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 6 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Le Rond Bois, Trélon, département du Nord -
 France
|
| Phase: | Combat |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | RAF Breighton |
| operation - Stuttgart, Germany |
Claimed by Oblt Reinhold Eckardt 7./NJG3(detached III./NJG4) - 8km West of Trelon at 02:53. In a later statement by Plt Off Train (POW) he said “The aircraft was shot down at approx 0250 hours on 7/5/1942 at a position approx 10 miles south east of Maubeuge. All other members of the crew left the aircraft safely. I was last out at about 1000-2000 feet with Fg Off Kennedy still at the controls although preparing to leave. He did not say that he was then wounded although there was a hole in the perspex in front of him. When my parachute opened the aircraft was burning on the ground. The Germans picked me up about 36 hours later and took me to the scene of the crash. The remains of one of the crew was still in the wreckage. He later was told by Plt Off Ferry that the remains were
buried at Maubeuge.” Sgt Stephenson (POW) said “ Fg Off Kennedy was killed when the aircraft, of which he was
Captain, crashed in a wood approx 15kms from the village of Eppe le Sauvage in France, near the Belgium border.”
In his statement Plt Off Ferry (POW) also stated “Kennedy was doing a magnificent job at the controls and this factor undoubtedly enabled the lives of the rest of the crew to be saved. Ferry also reported “the aircraft was attacked by an ME110 and the port engine and wing was set on fire. The Captain ordered the crew to bale out and the crew
acknowledged. The Captain was unable to bale out and he crashed with the aircraft. The aircraft was at 1200 feet and in a shallow dive when I baled out. It crashed near Eppe le Sauvage, France. I was four days at large and then betrayed by a French farmer and captured by the French police.”
Crew
Pilot:402362 Fg Off William joseph Kennedy RAAF - Avesnes-Sur-Helpe Communal Cemetery Row AA. Coll. grave 5-8. (The collective gave contains those who died on 7 Sqn Stirling N3710 MG-M 6 May 1942)
Pilot:406130 Plt Off Ian Frederick Keys RAAF - Stalag Luft 3 Zagan & Belaria. PoW Number 7777
Observer:402913 Plt Off Henry Roland Train RAAF - Stalag Luft 3 Zagan & Belaria. PoW Number 782.
Bomb Aimer:402527 Sgt S H Sharp RNZAF - Stalag Luft 3 Zagan & Belaria PoW Number 88.
Wireless Operator/Air Gunner: 402762 Sgt Jack Mitchell Stephenson RAAF - -Stalag Luft 6 Heydekrug. PoW Number 94
Air Gunner:406089 Plt Off Roderick Roland Ferry RAAF - Stalag Luft 3 Zagan & Belaria. PoW Number 768.
Sources:
460 SQUADRON RAAF, WORLD WAR 2 FATALITIES
Nachtjagd Combat Archive The Early Years part two
CWGC
France-Crashes 39-45
https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/ViewImage.aspx?B=1055158
Google Maps
History of this aircraft
Other occurrences involving this aircraft
| 13 March 1942 | Z1251 | 460 Sqn RAAF | 6 | Sint-Joris, Nieuwpoort, West Flanders |  |
w/o |
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 23-Dec-2017 12:43 | Red Dragon | Added |
| 21-Oct-2018 13:33 | stehlik49 | Updated [Operator, Destination airport] |
| 05-May-2022 19:10 | TigerTimon | Updated [Other fatalities, Location, Phase, Destination airport, Source] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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