WW2 US Airplane Crash

On the 17th February 1945, while attempting to return to its home base at Attlebridge near Norwich, a stricken B-24 Liberator bomber crashed down Roddy Lane, Field Dalling, resulting in the deaths of not only its crew, but also two Italian POW farm labourers.

 

A small team of local people with a strong interest in the story have researched these events and have also retrieved several crash items confirming the plane’s identity and exact location of the crash site. 

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On the 17th February 2020, the 75th anniversary, a dedication event was held at the village hall in honour of those who lost their lives, and a new memorial stone and plaque to mark the location of the crash site was unveiled.

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The Crash 

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The following is an account of the crash written by Langham Dome historian, John Allan.

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On 17th Feb 1945 the 466th Bomb Group, home based at Attlebridge, was tasked as part of a raid on the Magdeburg Oil Refinery in Germany. The raid was, in fact, recalled before reaching the target due to poor 

weather both over Europe but also deteriorating conditions of low cloud and poor visibility over the bases in East Anglia. 

B-24J Liberator serial number 42-50717 and named “Berlin Bound” had taken off from Attlebridge shortly after 09.00. Immediately prior to starting the engines it had been noted that the ground crew chief had been working on some sort of technical problem with the No2 (left inboard) engine but reported the issue had been fixed. Seven minutes after take-off, at approximately 09.20, and about 12 miles out to sea from the North Norfolk coast, the navigator alerted the captain to a fire in the No2 engine which was rapidly spreading to the wing, which contained fuel tanks full of high octane aviation fuel. 

The captain immediately turned back towards land with the apparent intention of trying to get back to Attlebridge. A radio message was sent out asking for a safe place to jettison the bomb load which also suggests the pilot believed he could keep the aircraft airborne for at least a limited time. Unfortunately the situation deteriorated rapidly with an increasing possibility that the fuel tanks could explode. The crew prepared to abandon the aircraft and, while still over the sea, and without the abandon aircraft signal having been given, three of the air gunners baled out from the camera hatch near the waist gun position in the rear of the aircraft. These three men landed in the icy waters of the North Sea, two of them drowning before they could be rescued. The navigator and front gunner remained in the aircraft until the captain give the bale out signal then abandoned the aircraft at less than 1000 feet, also via the camera hatch. They landed on RAF Langham airfield without significant injury. 

It was known that the Flight Engineer and Radio Operator had been seen putting on their parachutes and preparing to jump from the aircraft. Some reports have suggested that the remaining crew including the pilots had attempted to abandon the aircraft but were too low for their parachutes to open. 

The aircraft crashed at around 09.30 at Church Farm, Field Dalling. Official records indicate three bodies were recovered at the crash site and it seems likely that both pilots, the Flight Engineer and Radio Operator were still in the aircraft when it crashed. They may well have realised that they were too low to bale out and instead hoped to nurse the aircraft to a safe landing. 

Sadly a group of Italian prisoners of war were working in the field where the aircraft crashed and tragically two were killed – one instantly and a second succumbing to injuries four days later. 

 

Casualties and Survivors 

Pilot : 1st Lt William C Lindhe – Believed killed in crash – Buried at Cambridge American Cemetery Madingly Cambridgeshire UK

Co-Pilot : 2nd Lt Robert H Brennan – Believed killed in crash - Buried at Cambridge American Cemetery Madingly Cambridgeshire UK 

Navigator : 2nd Lt John F Fay – Baled out over Langham airfield – Safe 

Radio Operator : Staff Sergeant Claire W Eclov – Believed killed in crash – Buried at Greenwood Cemetery, Brookings, South Dakota USA 

Flight Engineer : Staff Sergeant Robert D Gautreau – Believed killed in crash – Buried at Pine Grove Cemetery, Lynn, Essex County, Massachusetts USA 

Front Gunner (1) : Sergeant (Technician 4th Grade) Robert Robinson - Baled out over Langham airfield – Safe 

Waist Gunner (2) : Sergeant (Technician 3rd Grade) Kenneth B Hoffman – Baled out over sea but managed to swim to shore and survived 

Tail Gunner : Staff Sergeant (3rd Grade) Archibald (Archie) W Patterson Jr - Baled out over sea and drowned, body believed to have washed up on French coast – Buried Arlington Memorial Park, Whitehall, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, USA 

Ball Gunner : Sergeant (Technician 4th Grade) Robert C Short – Baled out over sea and drowned – Place of burial unknown 

Caporale Maggiore Raffaele Di Luca – Died of injuries 21 Feb 1945 – Buried Brookwood military cemetery Surrey. 

Soldato Giordano Romagnoli – Killed instantly by crashing B-24 17 Feb 1945 - Buried Brookwood military cemetery Surrey.

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The Memorial

 

The organising team behind the memorial included Reg Rogers, whose initial idea it was and also designed and built the memorial, and Nigel Crossland who helped to plan the event.

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On the 17th February 2020 (the 75th anniversary), a ceremony was held at the Field Dalling Village Hall.  The ceremony was divided into three parts: speech and service delivered by Nigel Crossland and the Rev’d Ian Whittle respectively followed by the honour guard. The honour guard was undertaken by dress uniformed US military personnel from 100ARF Wing based at RAF Mildenhall and comprised a rifle attention detail followed by bugle ceremony outside.  It was attended by about 35 people, several of whom, came with their jeeps/army ambulance from a WW2 military vehicle club. Catering included a special cake (bearing the 466BG insignia), and there were also photographs, paintings, flags, projected PowerPoint images and recovered aviation parts on display. All those who have been actively supportive of the project were thanked and the dedication event was appreciated by all those attending.

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In the gallery below is the original report of the crash, albeit the wrong date, a photo of the memorial stone on Roddy Lane, and some photos of the ceremony.