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* Report: July 15th, 2023: The Belgians Parade to the London Cenotaph *

RAF aircraft's crash sites in Province of West-Vlaanderen:
Off the Belgian coast

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Last update: 25/06/23


Elegy to
the Heroes of Silence


* To the 50 Squadron *
* To the crew of AE380-VN *
* To the monument erected in remembrance *
* Cemetery where rest the crew *
* Memorial where the crew is commemorated *

Crash site of Hampden AE380-VN
15/12/1941

aircraft
cest raf squadron
Unit: 50 Squadron
Aircraft: Hampden
Code: AE380-VN
Base: Skellingthorpe
Mission: Oostende
Crew officer:
Incident:

Location: (Prov. West-Vlanderen)

crash

Facts

On December 16, at 5:50 pm, two Hampdens of the 50 Sqdn take off from Skellingthorpe for a raid on ships at Ostend. A first machine returns early because of problems in the starboard engine. The second Hampden was caught in the spotlight and shot at by the light Flak of the Stabsbatterie MAA 204.
Just after 8.42 pm, the AE380 crashed into the sea opposite the Military Hospital. The next day a crew member was fished up at sea and brought in at Ostend. It was 20-year-old pilot Sgt. William Young from Rhodesia, dressed in leather trousers and waistcoat with the following items in his pocket: rubber bag, map, 1,000 French francs, 350 Belgian francs and 20 Dutch guilders, also 16 British pounds and 10 shillings.
We are still in the dark about the fate of Sgt Ferguson, Sgt White and Sgt Armer.

Sources:
Rate One
The International Bomber Command Centre (IBCC)
Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC)
Aircrew Remembered
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