Date:	Sunday 21 December 1941
Time:	16:30 LT
Type:	Handley Page Hampden Mk I
Owner/operator:	106 Sqn RAF
Registration:	AE151
MSN:	ZN-F
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 4
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	Oosteinde Schoonebeek, Drenthe -   Netherlands
Phase:	Combat
Nature:	Military
Departure airport:	RAF Coningsby, Lincolnshire
Destination airport:	RAF Coningsby, Lincolnshire

Narrative:
Mission: Oldenberg. Took off from RAF Coningsby at 12:10 hours on 21/12/1941. Crashed at Oosteinde Schoonebeek, Drenthe, 14 km South of Emden, Netherlands, at 16:30 hours due to battle damage. The aircraft was damaged by Flak over Germany and finished off by fighter pilot Oberfeldwebel Werner Gerhardt of the 3./JG 1, who was flying a Bf 109 from Jever airfield in Germany. Of the crew of four, one was killed; the other four survived, were captured, and taken as POWs. According to one source (see link #7)

"On Sunday 21 December 1941 a Hampden aircraft AE151 ZN-F along with five other aircraft from 106 Squadron (No.5 Group) RAF took off from RAF Coningsby as part of a formation of 15 Hampdens to attack several targets in north western Germany. An hour after departure, Bomber Command aborted the mission because of dense cloud cover over the target area. The Morse code message was not received by AE151/ZN-F and the aircraft flew on to the specified target - Oldenburg - under anti-aircraft artillery (Flak) fire. Despite several hits, they managed to bomb their target, but the nose of the aircraft was badly damaged.

Navigator/Air Bomber Anthony Carter was killed. Heavily damaged, the aircraft was turned towards home but close to Schoonebeek one of the two engines failed. The crew decided to make an emergency landing and were taken prisoner. Anthony Carter is buried in the Commonwealth War Graves section of the Municipal Cemetery in Schoonebeek."

Crew
Flight Sgt Reginald Stanley Hartgroves - Pilot (POW)
Pilot Officer Anthony Carter (Navigator/Bomb Aimer, Service Number 68170) - KIA (NCO:1169975 Commission Gazetted : Friday 04 July, 1941)
Sgt Ron Yearsley (Wireless Op/Air gunner) (POW)
Sgt Doug Martin (Air Gunner) (POW)

Pilot Officer Anthony Carter is buried in Oud Schoonebeek General Cemetery (Plot 3, Row 1 - Grave 754).

1. W.R. Chorley: Royal Air Force Bomber Command Losses of the Second World War 1941 Page 193.
2. Personal account given to me by my father - Reg Hartgroves
3. https://verliesregister.studiegroepluchtoorlog.nl/rs.php?aircraft=&sglo=T1360&date=&location=&pn=&unit=&name=&cemetry=&airforce=&target=&area=&airfield=
4. http://www.rafcommands.com/archive/00029.php
5. https://studiegroepluchtoorlog.nl/21-12-1941-sglo-t1360-handley-page-hampden-mk-i-ae151-zn-f/
6. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2820852/carter,-anthony/
7. http://www.slo-drenthe.nl/schoonebeek.html
8. http://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/Gliederungen/Jagdgeschwader/Inhalt.htm
9. Rob Davis Bomber Command Losses Database

Other occurrences involving this aircraft

5 July 1941	AD914	106 Sqn RAF	4	near Heeze, Noord-Brabant		w/o
22 January 1942	AT146	106 Sqn RAF	4	North Sea off Friesland		mis

Hendrik Gijlers (brother of farmer Egbert Gijlers) risked his life by taking four covert photographs of the crashed Hampden, before its remains were later recovered for examination by the German authorities. Presumably taken late Dec 1941 / early Jan 1942

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
17-Dec-2008 11:45	ASN archive	Added
16-May-2016 19:00	Red Dragon	Updated [Cn, Operator, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Phase, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative]
11-Dec-2017 13:40	Laurent Rizzotti	Updated [Aircraft type]
16-Mar-2018 17:26	Nick Hartgroves	Updated [Time, Cn, Source, Narrative, Photo, ]
06-Aug-2018 17:05	Dr.John Smith	Updated [Time, Other fatalities, Location, Phase, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative]
06-Aug-2018 17:06	Dr.John Smith	Updated [Narrative]
28-Oct-2018 13:02	Nepa	Updated [Operator, Operator]
03-Jan-2020 16:15	TigerTimon	Updated [Embed code]
13-Apr-2020 15:26	TigerTimon	Updated [Time, Other fatalities, Source, Narrative]
13-Apr-2020 15:28	TigerTimon	Updated [Narrative]
18-Jun-2022 11:58	Ron Averes	Updated [Location]
21-Dec-2023 07:47	Rob Davis	Updated [Source, Narrative]