”Natten til den 30. august 1944 overfløj næsten 600 britiske bombere Danmark under bombetogter til henholdsvis Königsberg (Kaliningrad) og Stettin (Szczecin). Under returflyvningen fra Stettin blev Lancaster LM 479 skudt i brand af en tysk natjager og nedstyrtede ved Dejbjerg (omkring her). Hele besætningen omkom.
(Styrtet var omkring 700 m sydvest for Kjærgaard, Gribsvej 3, 6900 Skjern her. Kilde: Søren Sand Nielsen) Se p371MACR.

Efter at den tyske værnemagt delvis havde nedgravet de dræbte flyvere på nedstyrtningsstedet ved Dejbjerg Kjærgård, forespurgte sognepræst Hans Pedersen en tysk Hauptmann i Skjern om tilladelse til at give flyverne en kristen og anstændig begravelse. Den tyske officer mente, at RAF flyverne netop havde fået den begravelse, der var passende for dem.

Meget vred – og meget bedrøvet – meddelte sognepræsten derpå, at han nu på den danske kirkes vegne ville sørge for, at flyverne fik en kristen begravelse.

Sognefogeden i Dejbjerg ringede derpå til politimesteren i Ringkøbing, og denne sørgede for, at CBU folk under ledelse af kaptajn Kisbye kom til stede med spader, grebe, gasmasker og kister. Ligene af de 8 flyvere blev lagt i 4 kister, som derpå blev ført til Dejbjerg Kirkegård. Her havde folk fra modstandsbevægelsen gravet en stor fællesgrav.

Ved solnedgangstid den 14. september 1944 foretog sognepræst Hans Pedersen så begravelsen, der blev overværet af mange folk fra sognet medbringende smukke blomster – og af politimesteren fra Ringkøbing. Salmesangen var stærk og mægtig, og alle var meget bevægede, da sognepræsten foretog jordpåkastelsen på de 4 kister.

Da værnemagten fik nys om den illegale begravelse blev sognepræsten, sognefogeden og sognerådsformanden hentet til afhøring hos tyskerne i Stauning. De kom dog på fri fod igen efter nogle dages forløb.” (FAF) Se folderen Flyvergraven på Dejbjerg kirkegård fra Arne Mosgaard med siderne 2-3-4-5-6-1 klar til udskrift.
Se Operation 30 AUGUST 1944 - ruter og tab. Se Lancaster HW-R og foto af overflyvning af Dejbjerg Kirkegård af denne Lancaster fra RAF BBMF.
Se også Lancaster fotos.
8 flyvere.

”Nearly 600 British bombers flew over Denmark on the night before 30 August, 1944 on bombing raids to respectively Königsberg (Kaliningrad) and Stettin (Szczecin). During the return flight from Stettin Lancaster LM 479 was hit and caught fire from a German night fighter and crashed at Dejbjerg (about here).
All of the crew perished. (The crash was about 700 m south west of Kjærgaard, Gribsvej 3, 6900 Skjern here. Source: Søren Sand Nielsen) See p371MACR.

When the German Wehrmacht partially had dug the killed airmen down on the crash site at Dejbjerg Kjærgård vicar Hans Pedersen asked a German Hauptmann (Captain) in Skjern for permission to give the airmen a Christian and decent burial. The German officer´s view was that the RAF airmen just had had the burial suitable to them.

Very angry – and very sorrowful – the vicar then announced that he on behalf of the Danish church would see to that the airmen could have a Christian burial.

The sheriff in Dejbjerg then called the police commissioner in Ringkøbing who arranged that people from the Civil Defence lead by Captain Kisbye came to the site with spades, forks, gasmasks and coffins. The bodies of the 8 airmen were laid in 4 coffins, which then were taken to Dejbjerg Churchyard. Here people from the resistance movement had dug a big common grave.

At sunset on 14 September, 1944 vicar Hans Pedersen then held the funeral attended by many people of the parish, who had brought beautiful flowers – and by the police commissioner from Ringkøbing. The singing of hymns was strong and mighty, and all were very moved, when the vicar officiated at the graveside ceremony by sprinkling earth 3 times on each of the 4 coffins.

As the Wehrmacht got wind of the illegal burial the vicar, the sheriff and the chairman of the parish council were taken to interrogation at the Germans in Stauning. However, they were released again after some days.” (FAF) See the folder Royal Air Force graves Dejbjerg from Arne Mosgaard with the pages 2-3-4-5-6-1.

See Lancaster HW-R and photo of flypast of Dejbjerg Churchyard by this Lancaster from RAF Battle of Britain Memorial Flight.
See Operation 30 AUGUST 1944 - routes and losses.
Also No. 101 Squadron RAF - Wikipedia * 101 Squadron Association * RAF Ludford Magna at RAF-Lincolnshire-info and the modern 101 Squadron.
Lancaster III LM479 SR-F took off from RAF Ludford Magna at 21.30 hrs on 27 AUG 1944. (Source: Aircrew Remembered has this.) See Lancaster Photos.
It had a Rolls-Royce Merlin variant 38 engine produced by Packard in the U.S.A. - see List of Rolls-Royce Merlin variants. (Source: The RAF Museum, London)
8 airmen.