A. Dowie Updated: 17 MAY 2022
Airman: o888211.htm Surname: Dowie Init: A Rank: Sgt Service: RAF Sqdn: 149
P_link: p153.htm Plane: STI BK714 Operation: Bomb G Crash_site: Tarp, Esbjerg
Crash_d: d210443 Buried_d: o888 C_link: o888.htm At_Next: POW
"Under en stor overflyvning af Danmark
natten til den 21. april 1943, hvor bombemålene var Stettin og Rostock,
nedstyrtede mindst 17 fly på dansk område.
Fra 8 af disse fly blev i alt 40 dræbte flyvere begravet i Esbjerg. De 37
begravedes om formiddagen den 30. april 1943 ved den største jordfæstelse af
allierede
flyvere under besættelsen. Ved højtideligheden medvirkede en tysk
feltpræst, og der blev nedlagt kranse fra både den tyske værnemagt og Esbjerg
byråd." (FAF)
STI BK714 udsendt mod
Rostock fik en voldsom landing (omkring
her) nær Esbjerg Lufthavn (i
området omkring dette punkt).
(Kilde: Kortet Flystyrt ved Esbjerg af Torben
Thorsen og Morten S. Jensen) Sergeant (Observer) Eric Lewis i flyets næse
omkom
under landingen.
Sergeant (Wireless Operator) A. Dowie og 5 andre besætningsmedlemmer blev taget til fange, da de forlod flyet.
Han blev ført til L1 Barth.
(Air
Force PoWs 1939-1945)
Se beretning i brev fra Squadron Leader (Pilot)
T.L.
Howell om flyvningen over Nordsøen og afslutningen
her (oversigtskort).
Præcis navigation om natten over åbent hav på en så lang afstand er meget
vanskelig!
1 flyver fra
STI BK714 er begravet i Esbjerg. 6 flyvere blev
som krigsfanger sendt til Tyskland.
Se
Tyske krigsfangelejre.
Se Stettin +
Rostock 20 - 21 April 1943.
Se også Luftalarmer i Esbjerg.
7 flyvere.
"At least 17 planes crashed in Danish
territory during a great overflight of Denmark on the night before 21 April 1943
targeting Stettin and Rostock.
From 8 of these planes 40 perished airmen were
buried in Esbjerg. 37 of them were buried before noon on 30 April 1943 at
the greatest interment of allied airmen
during the occupation. A German army
chaplain took part in the ceremony, and wreaths were laid from the German
Wehrmacht and the Town Council of Esbjerg." (FAF)
STI BK714 heading for
Rostock had a hard crash landing (about
here)
near Esbjerg Airfield (in
the area around this point).
(Source: The map Air Crashes at Esbjerg by
Torben Thorsen and Morten S. Jensen) Sergeant (Observer) Eric Lewis in the nose
turret
perished during the landing.
Sergeant (Wireless Operator) A. Dowie and
5 other crew members were captured, as
they left the plane.
Sergeant (Wireless Operator) A. Dowie
was taken to Camp
L1 Barth. (Source:
Air Force PoWs
1939 to 1945.)
See the account in a letter from Squadron Leader (Pilot)
T.L.
Howell about the flight across the North Sea and the end
here
(overview).
Accurate navigation at night over the open sea at a so long distance is very
difficult.
1 airman from
STI BK714 is buried in Esbjerg. 6 airmen were
taken to Germany as POWs.
See
German POW-Camps.
See
No. 149 Squadron
RAF - Wikipedia * Stettin +
Rostock 20 - 21 April 1943
* Air-raid warnings in
Esbjerg.
Stirling III BK714 OJ-L took off from
RAF Lakenheath at 22.08 hrs on 20 APR 1943 targeting Rostock.(Source:Aircrew Remembered
has
this+Archive
Report)
7 airmen