On 10 May 2011 it was established
that till then unknown airmen in
Bispebjerg Cemetery were
from
Halifax DT628 that crashed
at Halskov on 21 April 1943.7 airmen
found together could only have crashed on land and only at Halskov. The
plane at Halskov could only be one of 4 missing planes from the big bombing
raid
on Stettin + Rostock 20-21 April 1943. 1
Halifax and 3 Lancasters were lost without trace.
Photos of Merlin engines and
a propeller on known positions mean
Halifax or Lancaster. Photo of a
Halifax undercarriage in Korsør is important. A
German document from
Luftgaukommando XI states that the plane at Halskov north
of Korsør was a Halifax!!! Then it can only be
Halifax DT628! The plane and
airmen were blown into many pieces and there was a sea of flames. Parts of
bodies were collected in a number of ways. The best estimate was that there
were 7 airmen as usual, but there were 8. See
Crew Sheet and
Operations of Brett's crew.
On 10 May 2011 the Service Personnel and
Veterans Agency wrote to me about the graves seen on
Bispebjerg plan:

(This process would take 6-9 months, so a few
relatives
of one of the airmen visited the cemetery on 30
November
2011 to see the plot as it has been for decades!
Unfortunately some reporters got it wrong and announced
that there would be a ceremony in November 2011.
Nothing had been decided about the kind of ceremony
some day next year!
Now not even
Sgt Thomas Mairs will be
provided with a new headstone! AS)
Joy in Korsør that the case had been solved and greater joy in families in
the United Kingdom to know the last resting place of their loved ones. When
newspapers in England and Scotland told about the case, Danish newspapers
and TV followed up, also with interviews.
See
MailOnline/HALcrew *
Daily Record* BerlingskeT.
11 NOV + 22 NOV 2011 *
JP-netavis-kpn.dk *
TV2oj-article * TV2oj - speech * Play
TV2oj.
Fortunately the media attention meant that
quite a number of people from all parts of Denmark contacted me to tell more
about air crashes they know about.
Unfortunately it also meant that an anonymous
Dane sent some secret points to the Air Historical Branch, maintaining that the decision was wrong!
(The email from the Head of Air Historical Branch revealed that the Dane
thought that at least one of the graves contained the remains of a member of
the crew of
Lancaster ED557. (Wrong, Sgt C.
Walker is in grave 7-131. AS) On consulting the file related to
Lancaster ED557 the report with the
three photos was
found!)
Without any
involvement of me in the new decision
making process I was told in an email from a next of kin of one of the
airmen on Friday evening (25
NOV) that
a new decision stated that it was not a Halifax!!! On 1 December 2011 another next of kin was told that it was definitely a Lancaster!
On 5 December 2011 18:47 I received an email
from Mr Sebastian Cox, Head of Air Historical Branch(RAF):
A report of the Missing Research and Inquiry Service's investigation of the
crash site contained reference to a recovered part, namely a constant speed
governor unit, with a part number, together with three photos that depicted
two engines and a propeller from new angles. The Royal Air Force Museum
stated that the part number "related to a type of constant speed
governor unit which was ONLY fitted to Avro Lancasters. They also
stated that they believed the particular propeller/Merlin engine combination
shown in the photos also indicated that the aircraft was a Lancaster and NOT
a Halifax."
Then the Bispebjerg graves could not be those of the crew of
DT628.
"You will appreciate that we did not take this decision lightly. We were,
and are, well aware of the distress that this caused to the families of the
crew
of DT628, something which we very much regret. We are also well aware that
this decision would prove embarassing to both you and us, but we
nevertheless believe it was and is the right decision."
At the time this email was received a renewed
search for pieces of wreckage that might lead to a definitive
identification had been started! |