ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 49980
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| Date: | Thursday 21 September 1944 |
| Time: | afternoon |
| Type: |  Short Stirling Mk IV |
| Owner/operator: | 620 Sqn RAF |
| Registration: | LJ946 |
| MSN: | QS- |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 8 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | near Oosterbeek, Arnhem, Gelderland -
 Netherlands
|
| Phase: | Combat |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | RAF Fairford, Gloucestershire |
Takeoff at 12:25 hrs for a re-supply operation in support of Operation "Market Garden" (the Battle of Arnhem); failed to return. The crash site of Stirling LJ946 has still not been found after 74 years, but was probably near Oosterbeek, Arnhem, Netherlands. According to one published source (see link #5):
"Driver Sydney L Churchyard jumped out at me for being 1st Airborne division, i'm somewhat of an Arnhem buff and decided to look into his story more. I found out he was a member of 253 RASC Light Composite Company serving with 620 Squadron flying Short Stirling Bombers, he was an air dispatcher from 49th Air Dispatch Group but serving under 1st Airborne Division. He was killed sometime in the afternoon of 21st September 1944 flying a resupply mission over the Oosterbeek perimeter during the battle of Arnhem.
It's very likely he flew the previous days missions and knew exactly how perilous it was, it would have been a certainty after the first mission that subsequent airdrops would be fraught with danger. His plane was being flown by either F/O McLeod in Stirling LJ830 OR P/O Carey in Stirling LJ946...one of these planes crash landed and all members survived due to the heroic exploits of Corporal Sproston (who was awarded the Military Medal).
Unfortunately Sydney's plane was hit by heavy flak over Renkum (likely one of the dreaded 88 mm cannons) and crash landed with the loss of three lives but five aircrew survived the crash. His plane was likely carrying ammunition for anti tank guns and very possibly the dreaded Red Beret replacements, the scene in "A Bridge Too Far" with the canister full of berets happened from this same air drop."
Sources:
1. The Stirling File (Air Britain, 1979)
2. http://www.pegasusarchive.org/arnhem/maurice_mchugh.htm
3. https://verliesregister.studiegroepluchtoorlog.nl/rs.php?aircraft=&sglo=T4250&date=&location=&pn=&unit=&name=&cemetry=&airforce=&target=&area=&airfield=
4. https://en-gb.facebook.com/pg/Green-On-the-Story-of-Arnhem-Re-supply-976492119029398/posts/
5. https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/307825/post-office-and-walk-home
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 17-Dec-2008 11:45 | ASN archive | Added |
| 12-Sep-2019 08:02 | TigerTimon | Updated [Time, Cn, Operator, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Location, Phase, Departure airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 24-Oct-2019 23:22 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Other fatalities, Location, Source, Narrative] |
| 16-Jun-2022 11:31 | Ron Averes | Updated [Location] |
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