Lancaster website

[speedbird591]

Some of you may remember that I created a website chronicling the short Bomber Command career of my father's cousin in 1943. The most amazing thing about the project was how lucky we were in discovering so many facts about what happened to Teddy, particularly on his last flight.

Just a quick update on this if any of you are interested. Teddy's niece and nephew have just taken his sister out to Germany to visit his grave and to try and confirm the crash site. We knew that the aircraft crashed in a roughly one square kilometre area and using google earth I'd found a likely pond which was an odd shape - so this was their starting point. With very little German and armed with some written questions and some photos they knocked on the door of the nearest farmhouse and a woman answered the door.

No, she said, the pond was not the crash site as it was built in the 70s. However, her father-in-law, the farmer (who wasn't at home), actually lived there during the war and remembered the aircraft crashing in the wood just behind the farmhouse! She showed them the wood and allowed them to spend time in it although there were no obvious signs of the crash after all this time. Since their return they have had an email on behalf of the old farmer whose story corresponds exactly with what we already knew and he is now going to contact all his friends and ask what they remember of that night.

So the incredible detective story has led us, through a lucky hunch, to not only a positive ID of the crash site but an eyewitness as well! There can't be many research projects like this that have unearthed a story in so much depth. As soon as I get some photos from the family I'll update the website and let you know. The non-updated version is still up at http://www.speedbird747.com/teddy

Cheers

Ian

[DaveB]

What a lovely story Ian. A square kilometer doesn't sound much but of course, it is! Most fortuitous to get so close at the first attempt but hey.. a little bit of luck with a smattering of guesswork seems to have done the trick so who cares

ATB
DaveB

[airboatr]

Thanks for posting your findings about the search Ian. That is a good work you are doing .

[speedbird591]

I know some of you have been following developments in the creation of this website and it's still in a state of evolution so I thought I'd bring you up to date with what's been happening.

Firstly, I've completely rewritten the site in Serif WebPlus which is a much better program than the old MS Publisher that I used originally. The new site now looks the way I'd intended and is, I think, a worthy tribute to the crew of Lancaster ED504. I'm rather proud of it.

When I started this thread it was to record that we'd found the crash site. That was a bit premature and was due to the locals not speaking English! That crash site turned out to be of a Stirling about two weeks earlier. However, the farmer who remembered both crashes has consulted his friends and neighbours to produce a definitive map of the crash site of ED504 about a km from his farm. As well as the spot where the aircraft crashed, detonating its bomb load, he has indicated where the bodies of two of the crew were found. One was close by under an open parachute, the other some way off wearing an unopened parachute. We have a photo of the graves in the local churchyard where they were initially buried and only two of them were individual graves and likely to be the two intact bodies that were found. They were the bomb aimer and the wireless operator and I'm informed that both of these positions had adjacent escape hatches.

I've updated the site to reflect the new information. There's a link at the bottom.

We've been hoping that descendants of other crew members might stumble across the site if they're searching. So far I've been contacted by a man who, as a 9 year old, remembers the captain of the crew visiting his family in 1943 and giving him the badge from his forage cap - which he still has! I've found two crew members listed on extended family trees but the authors are far removed and are not sure if they know any contacts closer.

By reading those family trees I've been saddened by the realisation that most of these young man haven't got any direct descendants. The average age of bomber command aircrew when they died was 22. The vast majority of them were single and had had no opportunity to start their own family and have children. Their loss would not have been as the head of a family but as a son or brother and their memory would slowly have faded as their parents' generation passed away.

Almost all family members now living will be descended from brothers or sisters and will be a long way removed. It's so sad to realise that these boys not only sacrificed their own lives for our freedom but also their chance of creating a future generation.

With armistice day approaching, I realise how important it is for us to remember them as most of them don't have their own descendants to do so.

A Statistic of War

Ian

[airboatr]

That does look nice Ian, very nice indeed.

[Nigel H-J]

Hi Ian,

Just spent quite some time reading your website and really admire all the work that you have put into this.

Many of those who fought and survived the war are now sadly fading away, I just hope that this work you have done, as with other sites, will remain for a very long time to come to remember the terrible human sacrifices made during the Second World War.

Regards
Nigel.

[speedbird591]

Thanks, Joe and thanks, Nigel for your appreciative comments about the site. I'm glad you think it's a fitting tribute to the lads. Teddy's sister and her family think so and I suppose that's the important thing.

Ian

[thehappyotter]

Interesting stuff Ian, I shall add a link from the pond.

Bottesford is only a few miles down towards the vale from where I live so it's always good to learn a few things local too.

Rob.