Halifax II BB378 crash landed near Uggerløse 11/12 1943

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Halifax II BB378 crash landed near Uggerløse 11/12 1943.

The aircraft belonged to RAF 138. Sqn Bomber Command and was coded NF-D.
T/o 21:50 Tempsford. OP: SOE to Tablejam 18 and 19.

When approaching the drop zone at Gyldenløveshøj where the chief of the SOE in Denmark Flemming B. Muus should have been dropped Halifax BB378 was attacked by a German JU 88 night fighter.

The night fighter crew from 12./NJG 3 were Pilot Unteroffizier Klaus Möller, Funker Unteroffizier Aulram and Bordmec. Obergefreiter Kurt Laub and they were controlled by radar station “Seehund” based at Tybjerg on Sjælland. The Halifax caught fire and at 01:54 it crash landed at Bonderupgaard farm near Uggerløse, all nine crewmembers and Flemming Muus being unhurt.

After getting out of the burning aircraft Muus divided the crew into two teams. The three officers formed one team and the fiver sergeants formed another.

The wreckage

The officers who were Pilot F/Lt A.C. Barter, Navigator F/O C.W. Fry and Wop F/O E. Howel were sent east heading for “Ryegaard”. Saturday evening they reached the main road between Holbæk and Roskilde and met a man named Svend Ove Frederiksen of “Møllegaard” farm. He spoke no English but took them to Mr. Krügermeir who spoke the language. The flyers were given food and a place to sleep while Count Scheel of Ryegaard was contacted. Sunday morning he arrived at Krügermeirs house bringing two set of civilian clothes for the flyers while Krügermeir supplied one set. Arrangement was made for the flyers continued journey and in the afternoon they were driven to København in a ambulance. They were met by Inspector Lindell and after a couple of days they were shipped over to Sweden.

(Nigel Atkins)

The sergeants who were Flt. Engr. Sgt N. Anderson, Bombardier F/S B.H. Atkins, 2nd Pilot W/O E. Turvil, Air Gnr. S.G. Smith and Air Gnr. W.R. Riggs were given a telephone number and sent in a north westerly direction with instructions to find priest or doctor and from them call “Tom” on Central 16501. They walked for six miles before they found a barn where they hid for the rest of the night and the following day. In the evening they set out again and at 03:00 hours knocked on the door of a lonely farmhouse. After some difficulty in trying to explain their identity they were given food and a place to sleep until the next evening. In the evening they started out again and after being lost they knocked on the door of another farm where the farmer very reluctantly gave them their bearings as on the south-east corner of Roskilde Fjord. The flyers were given milk and bread but were refused to stay. They continued along the east side of the fjord and got food and shelter at another farm for the following day. At night they continued and after failing to get shelter from five different farms, it was getting very near daylight when they were taken in by an old man at a farm in Ølstykke near Frederikssund, after they had explained who they were. They were put up in the barn where they went to sleep.

The farmer called the police who in turn informed the Wehrmacht who picked the flyers up and took them to Høvelte barracks.

They were sent to Dulag Luft at Oberursel for questioning. After a while Anderson, Atkins, Smith and Riggs were sent to Stalag IVB Mühlberg a.d.Elbe while it is not clear where Turvil was sent.

Flemming Muus hid in a nearby haystack for a day and a half before he borrowed a bicycle from a farmer and rode to Sorø where he got on the train to København.

Sources: BCL, OLCB, AS 13-154, KT, LBUK, UA, RL 8/91-94, “De fandt en vej” by Bjørnvad, WO208/3330+3317.

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