Avro Lancaster II EE126 EM-A crashed near Pestinghausen on 1944-02-20
The aircraft Avro Lancaster II EE126 EM-A set off from RAF Spilsby on the 19th February 1944 to target Leipzig They were caught in searchlights and attacked by a night fighter near Mepen.The aircraft crashed at Pestinghausen. Three crew died,the others became POWs. He is commemorated at Beckilingen war cemetery. He would have been entitled to a 1939-45 War Medal and was awarded a 1939-1945 Star as his service period was terminated by his death.
The Crash
Three crew members died:
- Sgt J Morey
- Sgt S.P. Rogers
- Sgt Linton
Four crew members escaped by using their Parachutes
- Pilot Officer Jarvis
- Sgt S Pearson
- Sgt Maurice Askew
- SgtPhil Paddock
A very interesting story:
Former bomber flight engineer Maurice Askew, 95, last saw his aircraft going down in flames.
After being shot down in 1944 on only his second mission, the Christchurch retiree never expected to see anything of his Lancaster EE126 again. Parts of it have turned up in a German paddock.
Askew was on a night raid targeting aircraft factories in Leipzig on February 19, 1944, when the bomber was strafed by a Messerschmitt.
The bomber was captained by Englishman Walter Jarvis, 22, and the gunners were Canadians Sam Rogers, 19, and Len Linton, 23. The wireless operator, Jeff Morey, 21, was from the English Midlands.
"Suddenly Len and Sam shout there is a Messerschmitt coming in fast. Wally throws the control column forward and we corkscrew down. I push the throttles hard open on one side as we drop. Bullets are ripping into the plane and it bursts into flames."
Read the whole story here: Lancaster bomber found in Germany linked to Christchurch 95-year-old