LAN R5905 - Reunion                      På dansk                                          Updated:  21 MAY 2015

LAN R5905 crashed here near Madum on 24 SEP 1942. The farm Øster Høgsbjerg near Idom is here, Høgsbjergvej 11, 7500 Holstebro.
See from Arne Mosgaard the article A reunion 47 years later  page 1 and page 2 from Holstebro Dagblad on 15 July 1989:


A reunion 47 years later
By Lars Ole Knippel
Yesterday two crew members from a British bomber that was shot down, for the first time in nearly 47 years met their Danish helpers. They were received at the
Holstebro Town Hall by Vice-Mayor Jørn Walbjørn Christensen, who presented the Englishmen with gold cuff links and the ashtray of the town to thank them for their efforts for Denmark during the occupation.

Helped seven on the run
Farmer Ulrik Jensen, his wife Helga Jensen, and farmhand Arne Lykke Nielsen helped seven crew members on the run when their plane, a Lancaster bomber,
had been hit by German flak south of Ulfborg in the night between 25th and 26th September 1942. The Englishmen were on a bombing raid. Later they were appre-
hended and they were Prisoners of War for 31 months until they were liberated by the 9th American Army.

Both the Captain of the plane W. V. Rickards, who now lives in South Africa, and Co-Pilot J. W. Hargreaves, who lives in Sheffield in England, were moved at
meeting the people from the farm.  For many years all of them had in vain tried to contact each other.  Not until the Dane Helge Kristensen, Hornslet, who intends
to write a book about the chain of events, by a coincidence got on the track of the story did they manage to establish contact.

Remembers it as if it were yesterday
Then Ulrik and Helga Jensen owned the farm ”Øster Høgsbjerg” in Idom near Holstebro. Here the crew members took shelter and were fed. ”I remember the
encounter with the Englishmen as if it were yesterday,” Ulrik Jensen states. ”Helga came running to me in the cowhouse and said, ”Wet socks are hanging on a
beam in the stable.” Together with our farmhand I jumped up upon the threshing machine and we saw that the Englishmen put up their hands. They thought that I
was armed, but in my insufficient English I told them that they were among friends. Helga cooked a nice meal for the Englishmen who were weak with hunger and
we had a good time together. They asked for the directions to Esbjerg and Randers.  We advised them not to stay in West Jutland, because there were lots of
Germans in the area. During their further evasion they were apprehended by the Germans after a tip from a Dane.”

Hit by flak
Captain W. V. Rickards also clearly recalls the bombing raid to Denmark and the reception on the farm.
”A heavy thunderstorm over the North Sea had interrupted the intercom. However, we had it fixed. Through holes in the layer of clouds we saw the contours of the
west coast of Jutland. Suddenly we saw some flashes from the flak of the German Wehrmacht. Seconds later we had the disaster. The fuel tank in the port wing
was hit by a shell and burst into flames. It was impossible to bail out because the altitude was too low. We were hoping for a miracle. I said, ”Get ready to get
out fast,” dropped our seven tons of incendiary bombs and made a crash landing without a single scratch to any of us.
The British airmen hid all night and the following day. They were hungry and cold. After dark they reached ”Øster Høgsbjerg” where they recovered before they
moved on.

”We’ll never forget the Danish hospitality,” the Captain, now 69, stated. He and his Co-Pilot visited the farm and had a meal with their hosts after the reception at
the Town Hall. ”Next year I’ll go on holiday in Denmark - - -.”

See photo on page 2 of the article in Danish.