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Lancaster I PA163 crashed into Lovns Bredning bay 29/8
1944.
The aircraft belonged to PAF (RAF) 300 Sqn. Bomber Command and was coded BH-M.
T/o 21:08 Faldingworth. OP: Stettin.
When flying over Lovns Bredning Pilot F/L P. W. Wasik saw a bomber go down ahead
of him shortly before Lancaster PA163 was attacked by a German night fighter.
Wasik tried to evade the attack but PA163 was hit and exploded in the air
throwing Wasik clear of the wreckage. PA163 crashed into Lovns Bredning at
approximately 00:15 hours.
Ofw. Schmitt of 3. NJG 7 had a claim in square N/LT at 00:10 while Ltn Appel of
1.NJG 7 had a claim in N/LT-JT. Lovns Bredning is located in N/KT which is
rather close to LT and JT.
(Per Dantoft)
Lancaster I PA163
By instinct Wasik pulled the parachute handle and floated down towards Lovns
Bredning half unconscious. The meeting with the water woke him up and he
released the parachute harness and inflated his Mae West. He started swimming in
the direction of Alstrup church which he had noticed on the way down. When he
came to the shore at Vester Elkjær, he walked to the church and hid in the
chapel where he tried to dry his clothes.
In the morning Wasik left the chapel and soon met with the Graversen`s, a
brother and sister living not far from the church. They did not speak English
but asked him in and feed him while Substitute teacher Erik Larsen was called
for.
Larsen promised Wasik to help him and called Teacher Bjerre Kristensen of Ranum
and asked for his assistance. He agreed and called Hotel owner Bjerrehus who in
turn contacted Oscar Petersen in Aalborg. It was agreed that Wasik should be
brought to Drastrup co-op 15 kilometres south of Aalborg where he would be met
by an ambulance and taken to Aalborg.
At Alstrup Wasik was put on a bicycle, given instruction on driving in the right
hand side of the road and pointed in the direction of Ranum.
In Ranum Wasik was met by Teacher Dueholm who would follow him to Drastrup. The
ambulance arrived in Drasturp before Wasik and it was a bit difficult to explain
to onlookers that it had come to pick up a patient who suffered from acute
appendicitis when the patient was not actually there.
Wasik and Dueholm had hid in a ditch when they saw some German soldiers.
After a while they were back on the road and met with Bjerrehus and the
ambulance.
Wasik was placed in it and taken to Suensonsgade road in Aalborg where he stayed
for a couple of days. He was then handed over to Adam Nicolaisen who was head of
the local escape organisation. A lunch was prepared and Doctor Scherwin was
called to treat Wasik`s wounds.
The next day Wasik was moved to the village Albæk southwest of Sæby where he
would stay by Rural dean A. Hindsholm until he was picked up by Constable Kaj
Mortensen.
Mortensen took him to Sæby and handed him over to Constable Andres Poulsen who
would house him until he could be sent to Sweden. Poulsen was a constable by the
coastal police and in the evening when he was on duty, Wasik came along to his
office where they spent the night playing cards. The weather turned nasty and it
was not possibly to sail to Sweden until the following evening of 9/9 when Wasik
was sailed to Sweden by Skipper Jens “Asaa” Jensen onboard the fishing vessel
“Laura”.
The rest of the crew onboard Lancaster PA163 all died when it exploded.
On the morning of 30/8 it was reported that the body of one of the crew was
found. The body could not be identified.
On 31/8 at 10:00 hours a body was reported found washed ashore.
It was laid to rest in Aalestrup cemetery as an unknown flyer together with the
crew of Lancaster LH184 at 06:00 hours on the morning of 1/9 1944. It was either
Bomb aimer F/Sgt Josef J. Rutkiewicz or W/OP F/Sgt Jan Stolowski.
In the village
all the flags were at half-mast and at noon the local constable received a call
from the Gestapo in Aalborg telling him to have the flags removed within half an
hour. Otherwise the flag owners would be arrested and prosecuted. The flags were
removed.
(Aalestrup Lokalarkiv)
(Aalestrup Lokalarkiv)
(Aalestrup Lokalarkiv)
The graves at Aalestrup cemetery
(Per Dantoft)
F/Sgt Josef J. Rutkiewicz
(Per Dantoft)
W/OP F/Sgt Jan Stolowski
(Per Dantoft)
Navigator F/O Marian W. Pretkiewicz
On 6/9 the body of Navigator F/O Marian W. Pretkiewicz was found washed ashore
at Lovns Enge 16 kilometres west of Aalestrup. He was laid to rest in Aalestrup
cemetery on 7/9 1944.
(Per Dantoft)
Flt.Engr. F/Sgt Walerian Cent
On 14/9 1944 Flt.Engr. F/Sgt Walerian Cent was laid to rest in Aalestrup
cemetery.
(Per Dantoft)
Mid upper gunner F/Sgt Jan Madracki
The body of Mid upper gunner F/Sgt Jan Madracki was found washed ashore near
Sundstrup and was laid to rest in Aalestrup cemetery on 17/9 1944.
(Per Dantoft)
Tail gunner F/Sgt Zdzislaw Kardasiewicz
Tail gunner F/Sgt Zdzislaw Kardasiewicz was laid to rest in Aalestrup cemetery
on 20/9 1944.
All of the above were buried by the German Wehrmacht without ecclesiastical
assistance
After the war the wreck of Lancaster PA163 was recovered from the bottom of
Lovns Bredning and brought ashore on the beach near Hvalpsund dock. On 25/7 1945
it was reported that the body of a flyer was found in the wreck. The body was
taken to the chapel of Lovns and examined by the police and a doctor. On 28/7
1945 the flyer was laid to rest in Aalestrup cemetery. It was either Bomb aimer
F/Sgt Josef J. Rutkiewicz or W/OP F/Sgt Jan Stolowski.
Sources: LBUK, AS 46/217, Søren Ulrich Thomsen, Loun Parish register, AIR
27/1658, DFEV.
Night of 29/30 August 1944
Groups
Squadrons
Combats
Lancaster I PA163 crashed into Lovns
Bredning bay 29/8 1944
Lancaster I LM184 crashed Aalestrup
29/8 1944
Lancaster III PB202 crashed at Førby
Hede heath 30/8 1944
Lancaster X KB709 crashed in the sea
of Kattegat 6 miles off the island of Anholt 30/8 1944
Lancaster III PB143 crashed at
Ingerslev / Estruplund 30/8 1944
Lancaster III NE144 ditched in the
sea of Kattegat off the island of Anholt 30/8 1944
Lancaster III EE193 crashed in the
sea of Kattegat 30/8 1944
Lancaster I ME718 crashed at Ove
30/8 1944
Lancaster III PB436 crashed Gunderup
30/8 1944
Lancaster I LM116 crashed near Karup
30/8 1944
Lancaster III LM479 crashed Dejbjerg
30/8 1944
Back to 1944
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