ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 50333
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| Date: | Thursday 22 June 1944 |
| Time: | 01:22 claim |
| Type: |  Avro Lancaster Mk III |
| Owner/operator: | 44 (Rhodesia) Sqn RAF |
| Registration: | ND973 |
| MSN: | KM-A |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 7 / Occupants: 7 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | between Melick and Herkenbosch; Limburg -
 Netherlands
|
| Phase: | Combat |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | RAF Dunholme Lodge |
Took off from RAF Dunholme Lodge at 23:13 hrs for a bombing operation against the synthetic oil plant at Wesseling in Germany.
Outward-bound, the aircraft was caught by the night fighter crew of Oberleutnant Lau, Unteroffizier Backhaus & Gefreiter Reinecke in a Bf 110 G-4 of 4./NJG 1, who had taken off from Deelen airfield. Gefreiter Reinecke noted in his combat report:
"In attacking the second aircraft our pilot noticed that our guns had jammed in our first encounter and no longer worked. A further enemy was seen and he ordered me to open fire on it with my guns. A few minutes later I was in position and opened fire but without noticing any effect. However, after two bursts I saw flames in the starboard wing and the plane veered over to port. I watched it crash at 01.22 hrs”.
Funeral services for the crew were conducted at Herkenbosch General Cemetery, but since 1945 their remains have been removed to Jonkerbos War Cemetery:
Plt Off G Baxter (KIA)
Sgt D Betteron (KIA)
WO2 B A M Rutherford RCAF (KIA)
WO2 S Young RCAF (KIA)
WO K Scholes (KIA)
Flt Sgt D A Taylor RCAF
Sgt D R R L Whitfield (KIA)
Sources:
Nachtjagd Combat Archive 1944 part three
https://verliesregister.studiegroepluchtoorlog.nl/rs.php?aircraft=&sglo=T3832&date=&location=&pn=&unit=&name=&cemetry=&airforce=&target=&area=&airfield=
Google Maps
Royal Air Force Bomber Command Losses of the Second World War 1944 Page 291.
http://en.tracesofwar.com/bio/70416/Baxter-George.htm
History of this aircraft
Other occurrences involving this aircraft
| 17 April 1942 | R5510 | 44 (Rhodesia) Sqn RAF | 3 | 3 km West of Augsburg, Bayern |  |
w/o |
| 6 June 1942 | R5515 | 44 (Rhodesia) Sqn RAF | 0 | RAF Waddington, Lincolnshire, England |  |
sub |
| 25 March 1944 | ME672 | 44 (Rhodesia) Sqn RAF | 6 | De Flaes swamp, Lage Mierde, Noord-Brabant | |
w/o |
| 13 September 1944 | PB189 | 44 (Rhodesia) Sqn RAF | 8 | freight railway station at Stuttgart | |
w/o |
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 17-Dec-2008 11:45 | ASN archive | Added |
| 21-Jun-2016 09:49 | Red Dragon | Updated [Cn, Operator, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Location, Phase, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 30-Oct-2018 04:41 | Nepa | Updated [Operator, Destination airport, Operator] |
| 14-Oct-2020 17:01 | TigerTimon | Updated [Time, Location, Source, Narrative] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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