Just a heads-up for anyone interested that there will be a half hour programme on BBC Radio 4 at 11:00 this Friday (April 27th) entitled ‘The Pathfinder’, about the life and career of Air Vice-Marshal Donald Bennett. The programme is presented by Tom Mangold.
By: BSAA1947 - 24th April 2012 at 10:31
Thanks archieraf. Much to my embarrassment, I’d missed the significance of the date. I’ve emailed the programme’s producer to ask whether it was clever planning or an amazing coincidence. The story would have been very different but for a huge slice of luck that night. Bennett was certainly very lucky to survive the bailout at such a low altitude.
Ian
By: archieraf - 23rd April 2012 at 17:07
Got that noted in my diary. Link to the BBC Radio 4 programme info here http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01ghdnl
By coincidence? Or not? 70 years ago on the night of 27th April 1942, Halifax W1041 ZA-B flown by Bennett, was shot down while attacking the German Battleship Tirpitz in Fættenfjord, Norway. Bennett and crew baled out and managed to evade capture and escape to Sweden as did three others in the crew. Three of the crew were captured and spent the rest of the war as POW’s.
An account of that incident can be found here
http://www.archieraf.co.uk/archie/1041zab.html#april271041zab
Linzee aka archieraf
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April 23, 2012 at 11:04 am