At some date fairly soonish after 6 June 1944 a C-47 struck the South Downs and crashed at Beachy Head close to the Beachy Head Hotel. It was one of three aircraft returning together from France, and was laden with empty stretchers and headed for RAF Friston. Of the five on board, the Pilot, Co-Pilot and Wireless operator were killed. A Master-Sergeant on board was badly injured and died later in an Eastbourne Hospital. The fith man, the navigator, was thrown clear on impact and survived. I do not have his rank, but his name was Frank J. Priest (dob 15.5.21) and he died 29.8.94 in Redondo Beach. I have been unable to establish a date or any other details for this loss although the front port entry door turned up a while back, marked with either a large white 6 or 8 . Can anyone fill in any of the missing pieces of information, please?
Edit/Delete Message
By: avion ancien - 3rd April 2008 at 21:18
Was Friston its intended destination or was it coming in on a wing and a prayer? Many a larger aeroplane limped into Friston because it was the first aerodrome on the “friendly” side of the channel!
By: Arabella-Cox - 3rd April 2008 at 18:17
The B-17 parts are from a 1943 mid-air with another B-17 and parts frequently turn up.
The C-47 is atop the Downs, near the Beachy Head Hotel and parts have been found there.
Given the helpful input thus far I am inclined to the view that it must be the 14 September 1944 episode. I don’t know of a C-47 in that sea area – although SE of Beachy Head covers a lot of Channel, I suppose! I am inclined to think that the SE of Beachy Head description is a little incorrect. As it was headed for Friston I suppose, at a stretch, they could have meant SE of Friston which is, vaguely, right for a Beachy Head location.
By: cypherus - 3rd April 2008 at 14:11
Came up recently in another thread.:
http://forum.keypublishing.co.uk/showthread.php?t=76519
Parts found around the beachy head area on the sea front I beleive have been attributed too a B17 reported too have crashed in the sea off the lighthouse area and washed in over the years, not heard they were from a C-47 at all.
By: avion ancien - 3rd April 2008 at 10:13
Could it be C-47A 42-93276 97TCS, 440th Troop Carrier Group 14.9.44 crashed SE Beachey Head Pilot Roy Yonker + 4 killed ?
Wouldn’t “SE Beachy Head” put the crash site at sea, rather than close to the Beachy Head Hotel, unless the reference to “struck the South Downs” infers that it flew into the cliff face at Beachy Head. Either location would make the navigator’s survival, by virtue of being thrown clear, a little on the unlikely side. It would be more likely if the crash site was on land. What is the OS reference for the Beachy Head Hotel? Perhaps there may have been two C-47 crashes in this vicinity in 1944?
By: T-21 - 3rd April 2008 at 08:26
Could it be C-47A 42-93276 97TCS, 440th Troop Carrier Group 14.9.44 crashed SE Beachey Head Pilot Roy Yonker + 4 killed ?
Sign In
April 3, 2008 at 7:32 am