ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 226379
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| Date: | Sunday 12 May 1940 |
| Time: | 06:30 |
| Type: |  Bristol Blenheim Mk IV |
| Owner/operator: | 139 (Jamaica) Sqn RAF |
| Registration: | P4923 |
| MSN: | XD-G |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 3 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Herstal-Rhees, on the north-east outskirts of Liège. -
 Belgium
|
| Phase: | Combat |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | Plivot, France |
Bristol Blenheim Mk.IV P4923 (XD-G) of 139 (Jamaica) Squadron, RAF: Written off (destroyed) on combat operation - officially described as "Blenheim P4923 crashed at Herstal, Liege, Belgium, 12 May 1940. Leading Aircraftman J Rooney: report of death. Acting Squadron Leader T G Tideman and Sergeant G S Thomas uninjured".
At dawn the British air commander sent off nine A.A.S.F. Blenheims of No. 139 Squadron to attack a column on the road from Maastricht to Tongres. Running into the swarms of fighters previously reported over the area, they lost all but two of their number—a disaster which ended the life of the A.A.S.F. Blenheims as a useful force before it had begun, for the other squadron (No. 114) had been virtually destroyed on its airfield the previous day.
The German fighter pilot Walter Adolph (1913-1941) of 2./JG 1 shot down three Blenheims of 139 Squadron on this day., possibly including Blenheim P4923.
Blenheim P4923: Took off at 05:00 hrs from Plivot, France, briefed to bomb and strafe enemy troop columns advancing from Maastricht towards Tongeren. Shot down at Herstal-Rhees, on the NE outskirts of Liège, Belgium.
Crew of Blenheim P4923:
LAC (544996) John ROONEY (WOp/AG) RAF - killed in action 12/05/1940
S/Ldr (37027) Thomas Gunn TIDEMAN (pilot) RAF - Ok
Sgt ???? HALE (Obs.) RAF - Ok
Their aircraft crashed between Allied & German lines, bursting into flames and LAC Rooney, the gunner was killed immediately. Squadron Leader T.G. Tideman and Sgt,. Hale scrambled out of the wreckage unhurt and managed to reach a Belgian fort, where the defenders tried to make them stay, saying it was too dangerous to proceed further. After obtaining 2 bicycles, however they set out for their base. After a while they commandeered a motor car which had recently belonged to German tourists, and in this they joined the endless stream of refugees who blocked the roads everywhere in their panic to escape the invaders. They were bombed and machine-gunned on the road by German aircraft and had to take cover more than once beneath their car. They arrived back at their unit a day and a half late with the operational equipment of the car complete- two umbrellas, a pair of galoshes, a bag of sweets and a guide book. The car was presented to 139 Squadron by the Belgian authorities.
Sources:
1. Royal Air Force Aircraft P1000-P9999 (James J Halley, Air Britain, 1978 p 27)
2. National Archives (PRO Kew) File AIR 81/265: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C14142090
3. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2258815/rooney,-john/
4. http://www.epibreren.com/ww2/raf/139_squadron.html
5. http://www.belgians-remember-them.eu/crash-lie-hers.php
6. https://www.rememberingmysoldiers.be/belgium/li-ge/herstal-rhees-com-cem
7. http://www.rafcommands.com/archive/10138.php
History of this aircraft
Other occurrences involving this aircraft
| 3 June 1941 | V5460 | 139 (Jamaica) Sqn RAF | 0 | Mediterranean Sea - the west of Lampedusa Isle. |  |
w/o |
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 20-Jun-2019 23:58 | Dr. John Smith | Added |
| 21-Jun-2019 00:10 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Source, Narrative] |
| 21-Jun-2019 10:49 | stehlik49 | Updated [Operator] |
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