Southend 1944 Liberator Crash

Just a small sample of Southend incidents.

11.05.1944 Boeing B-17G 42-107147 “Sweet Melody” 360th BS 303rd BG Crash-landed RAF Southend

Pictures here :

http://www.303rdbg.com/pp-42-107147-crash.html

Didn’t know about the Sunderland, but I think that was why my Dad always used to tease about any strange aircraft I used to run to look at coming in to land at Southend Airport. He was RAMC and had no clue about aircraft but he’d always shout “It’s a Sunderland”. Now I believe this is where he got that idea from! As the Meteor was only a few roads away, I’m surprised he didn’t latch on to that!
Anyway, throw me a bone and I’ll run for it, so here (thanks to Geoff501) are 5 deaths on 21/10/47:-
CHAMBERLAIN E 1126413 – 21/10/1947 ROYAL AIR FORCE VOLUNTEER RESERVE
GURDIN AR 3100187 – 21/10/1947 ROYAL AIR FORCE VOLUNTEER RESERVE
HARVEY WA 199344 – 21/10/1947 ROYAL AIR FORCE VOLUNTEER RESERVE
RYAN JJ 1796817 – 21/10/1947 ROYAL AIR FORCE VOLUNTEER RESERVE
WRIGHT DR 3077585 – 21/10/1947 ROYAL AIR FORCE VOLUNTEER RESERVE

Of course there may have been other Nationalities, but it’s a start for you experts to relate Names to this aircraft.

Just a small sample of Southend incidents.

10.09.1951 15.30 Hrs Gloster Meteor F 8 VZ510 of 263 Squadron broke up in the air on test flight Westcliffe on Sea. Pilot plus 3 on ground killed.

31.08.1943 18.36 Hrs Republic P-47C Thunderbolt. 41-6367 UN-X 63rd FS, 56th FG. Forced landed near RAF Southend.
Pilot George A Compton safe and returned to duty.

11.05.1944 Boeing B-17G 42-107147 “Sweet Melody” 360th BS 303rd BG Crash-landed RAF Southend

21.10.1947 – Short Sunderland GR Mk 3 DV976 of MAEE ditched 2½ miles off Southend Pier following engine fire. Crew 4 killed

Thanks for the prompt, Alan, I’ve been meaning to investigate them for a couple of things for some time. Will go do it now…

Obviously the B17s were not the same incident, and we’ve found the right one, but if anyone is still interested in what the EAG found at Canvey let me know and I’ll try to sort it once I get back from the weekend.

*Cross post – with Beaufighter VI* Good to hear you are still about! I used to love that hut – a Hurricane dig at Finchingfield, when I was 7, ensured I was always going to be plane-mad.

Would anyone object if I scan those details? And somewhere there’s a thread running on one of your recoveries at Great Sampford where someone might appreciate a look-in from you!

Adrian

Essex Aviation Group are alive and well, still researching. Detail from our database gives the following.

20.02.1944 1558 hrs Consolidated B-24J-95-CO 42-100340 :Q 392nd BG 578th BS Crash landed, on return from operations, at Paglesham near
Southed Essex.
2nd Lt R K Goodwin (pilot) and crew (10) RTD. S/Sgt L H Brent seriously
wounded

The information is off Craig Fuller’s index of USAAF accident reports.

http://www.aviationarchaeology.com/src/dbaloc.asp?Loc=southend&Submit8=Go

There was a Category 5 write off as a result of a landing accident at Southend.

A-20G 41-3380, 670th BS / 416th BG, 16th October 1944. The pilot is recorded as Chester R. Jackson.

I’ve not found a P-38 but I did find a couple of P-51s and P-47s that were involved in accidents, but I only searched for Southend.

A20 did not know about that what was the information on the P51’s & P47.

Got a local video that shows the aftermath of the Meteor crash interviewing the peopel that saw it, seem to recall reading something about the aircraft having been grounded a short time before the crash due to over stressing of the airframe just cant remember where I saw it though.

There was a Category 5 write off as a result of a landing accident at Southend.

A-20G 41-3380, 670th BS / 416th BG, 16th October 1944. The pilot is recorded as Chester R. Jackson.

I’ve not found a P-38 but I did find a couple of P-51s and P-47s that were involved in accidents, but I only searched for Southend.

Very interesting!
I knew about the B17’s having lived in Southend near Rochford most of my life, but not about this Liberator.
Next you’ll be researching the fact that Rochford was the only airfield to have had German aircraft land, one in WW1 and the other in WW2.
Then it’s on with the Meteor crash in Westcliff?
What else?

Cheers for the help,

Amazingly after a hours surfing the net. countless cups of tea and Boost bars and one very numb bum!

I found it!

http://www.b24.net/missions/MM022044.htm
Makes intresting reading, its an incident I never knew about.

Some of the volunteers from Southend museum were involved in the 1970’s dig off Canvey Point for the remains of one of the B-17’s involved in the mid air collision. Amongst the parts recovered was an undercarriage leg that was displayed at the museum and I think it was one of the lots in the museum disposal sale when it closed. There was also an engine cylinder and some other bits and pieces which were in a display cabinet at one time.
I don’t know about a Liberator but I remember my uncle telling me that a B-17 undershot Runway 33/15 and landed on top of Warners Bridge during WW2.

Graham,

I’m sure that’s the same one – if anyone’s interested I don’t suppose the EAG are available to complain these days…

Adrian

It looks as though it maybe (name towards the bottom of the page), but the second page it truly dreadful!

As to more details, that depends on The Old Fart!

The B17 collision sounds like the one where one of the aircraft involved crashed at Canvey Island and was dug by the Essex Aviation Group in the 1970s – IIRC one of the pilots name was Ramacetti, or something very similar.

If you think that might be the incident, I can dig the booklet out and scan the relevant bits.

Adrian

Cheers

I will carry on digging the bloke was fairly sure it was a Liberator “High wing for engine american bomer” he said,

How about this challange

P38 Lightning crashed near Southend 23rd May 1944

Additional

The following is from the two-page accident report – the other page is very hard to read.

Cannot find a ‘Liberator’ crash, but I have located a mid-air collision on 19 June 1944, when two 379th BG B-17s collided, one – 44-6133 FR:Y coming down in the Thames estuary, somewhere in the region of Canvey Island and was later salvaged by 86MU while the other, 42-97942 FR:K crashed ‘just east of Southend’ and was destroyed by the ensuing fire.