ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 315101
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| Date: | Tuesday 29 June 1943 |
| Time: | |
| Type: |  Vickers Wellington MkIII |
| Owner/operator: | 23 OTU |
| Registration: | BK408 |
| MSN: | |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 5 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Location: | Llanwarne Court. -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Training |
| Departure airport: | RAF Pershore |
| Return. |
Details:
23OTU was formed at Pershore on 1 April 1941 within No.6 Grp Equipped with Wellingtons, it trained night bomber crews for the rest of the war. By June it had taken over Defford as a satellite and on the 11th of May 1942 it was transferred to No.91 Grp. On the 18th of May, RAF Defford was handed over to the Ministry of Aircraft Production resulting in the size of the OTU being reduced as it was now required to operate without a satellite. Along with the other OTUs it was called upon to provide aircraft and crews for the three 'Thousand Bomber' raid, the first of which took place on 30/31 May with No 23 OTU providing 34 aircraft and crews, one of which was lost. The following night another 33 aircraft was despatched to Essen with two failing to return but on 25/26 June it was only able to provide 17 aircraft for the raid on Bremen resulting in the loss of a further two aircraft. The unit later provided aircraft to other large Bomber Command operations, of which BK408 was involved.
The mark 3 version of which featured the 1,375 hp Bristol Hercules III or XI engine and a four-gun tail turret, instead of two-gun. A total of 1,519 Mark IIIs was built, becoming mainstays of Bomber Command from late 1941 through into 1942, with all but the two prototypes being built at Broughton in Flintshire and at Blackpool. After trials in 1942, the Wellington III was cleared it to tow Hotspur, Hadrian and Horsa gliders, although this was observed to have an adverse effect on the geodetic structure. The Wellington III was also seen over Salisbury Plain while towing Spitfires. This would have allowed Spitfire reinforcements for the defence of Malta to be towed from Gibraltar to within range of Malta before being released. Whether this was done is unconfirmed. Another change to the existing airframe was the mkIII could Carry the 4,000lb ‘Cookie’. The standard bomb beam had to be removed entirely, and a new beam installed above the bomb bay roof, attached to the Leading-Edge frame and a wider spar box on the centreline of the main spar. A 4,000lb type ‘F’ bomb slip was attached to this beam and positioned above the roof. The ‘Cookie’ hung flush with the roof. Even in this higher position, the bomb still protruded below the bottom of the aircraft. The bomb bay door directly below the bomb had to be removed, and a wooden framework was added in the bay for the remaining doors to rest against. When the bomb was dropped, it simply fell through the gap. Often only one aircraft in a squadron would carry a Cookie and this aircraft was the last to take off in case of mishap.
BK408 was built at Vickers of Weybridge and was the last of a batch of 24 aircraft of the thirteenth batch built, she came directly to 23 Operational Training Unit at Pershore. She was being flown by all Sergeant trainee crew when soon after taking off they encountered engine issues and the order to bail out was given, all the crew landed successfully with the empty Wellington coming down in farmland near Llanwarne Court, four miles over the English border, eight miles south of Hereford. An area heavily contested during the ancient war of the Marshes.
I have only been able to find the details of one of the crew, Sgt Grover went to serve with No.425 squadron, flying the Halifax heavy bomber. He along with the Halifax crew perished on the 26th of March the following year.
Crew:
Sgt W. P. Loring RCAF. Pilot. Safe.
Sgt Don Hernando De Soto Grover 22yo J/85140 RCAF. Nav’. Safe. 1
Son of Maurice B. Grover & Aimee Grover of Kirkland Lake, Ontario Canada.
Sgt G Svearson RCAF. Bdr’. Safe.
Sgt R. A. Haks RAFVR. W/Op/AG. Safe.
Sgt J. E. J. Page RAFVR. AG. Safe.
Buried:
1 Bath (Haycombe) Cemetery. Plot 39. Section H. Row A. Grave 248.
Wreckage:
Nothing remains above ground.
Memorials:
Canadian Virtual War Memorial Web page.
Canadian Memorial Toronto.
Memorial to the Halifax crew at Bradford-on-Avon.
CWGC Headstone.
Additional Information:
P/O Grover RCAF.
Memorial Plaque on side of a Tourist Information Office recalls the loss of 425 “Alouette” RCAF Sqn Halifax LW693 ‘KW-V’ on the 26th of March 1944.
The aircraft had departed Tholthorpe North Yorkshire at 1630 for a routine cross-country navigation exercise.
Whilst over Wiltshire at approx. 10,000ft, the pilot lost control of the aircraft and ordered the crew to bail out. Three did so immediately, although one of these the Flight Engineer, tragically fell to his death after falling through a loosely fitted parachute harness. The Mid Upper Gunner survived as did Cpl Craig Reid RCAF, a member of the Sqn Ground Crew conducting trials on the onboard “Gee” and H2S radio equipment. For unknown reasons other members of the crew did not bail out at this time.
Witnesses in Bradford on Avon saw the by now very low flying aircraft circling the town presumably looking for a suitable field to attempt a forced landing. Eventually it was seen with smoke and flames streaming from one of its engines which was now on fire.
In the last minutes, three more crew, the Navigator, Bombardier & the Wireless Operator were seen to bail out directly over the town. Tragically they were all killed as they were too low for their chutes to fully deploy. The aircraft crashed in a field above the town with the Pilot & Rear Gunner still on board and it exploded on impact. The pilot was killed in the crash, yet rescuers managed to free the rear gunner from his turret. Sadly, he died shortly afterwards
The mid-upper gunner returned to Ops, only to be killed in the loss of 425 (RCAF) Sqn Halifax LW672 KW-N over the Ruhr on the night of the 18/19th of July 1944.
Sources:
www.rafcommands.com
www,backtonormandy.org
www.facebook.com/international/bombercommandcentre.
https://canadianfallen.ca
www.cwgc.org.
www.veterans.gc.ca
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 11-Jun-2023 14:06 | Davies 62 | Added |
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