Account about Stirling III EF191 from Ove Medum to www.airmen.dk on 27 November 2013

"I was 11 years old when STI EF191 was shot down on 2 December 1943.

We lived on a small farm at Nørre Lydumvej, Lydum, 6830 Nørre Nebel, about 10 km from the crash site at Hemmet as the crow flies.

As we lived at about the same distance from Nymindegab, which was strongly fortified with German artillery, we were used to a lot of activity

in the air and shooting at Allied planes on their return flights from raids on Germany at about midnight.

We often woke up when grenades exploded and pieces of them fell down on our roof that was covered with corrugated iron plates

(Emu Brand, Australia).

My father discovered the shooting down, and he called my sister, my mother and me to the yard. In the starry night we saw the burning plane

losing height.

The plane was enveloped in flames and in the reflection of the fire we saw 2 crew members in their parachutes being perforated by red tracer bullets.

The plane exploded in a big sea of flames before it hit the ground.

Next day Svend (the son of our neighbour) and I shirked school to go to the crash site at Hemmet on our bikes.

Here we were met by 3 German guards who graciously allowed us to get so close that we could look down into a big crater filled with water.

When we were walking back to our bikes (with solid rubber tyres) Svend suddenly exclaimed, "What - - - - is lying there?"

It appeared to be the right ear of one of the airmen - a tragic experience as a child."