The Operations Record Book for 149 Squadron for 3 January 1943 states - " Training and Maintenance carried out. 3 A/C detailed for night bombing practice. 1 A/C, R9334 , R89695 Sgt. Blair J.L. Captain, crashed. One member of crew, 657522 Sgt. Whitelock killed. Aircraft was burnt out."
It is interesting to note that the service number attributed to the pilot was incorrect - in fact it belonged to my father, Jake Giacomelli, who was the navigator on that aircraft.
I should like to tell you the story of that crash which some of you may personally remember as the Stirling which came down virtually into the village of Lakenheath. It was told to me by my father and in recent years, after his death, I was able to add to my knowledge of it thanks to eye witnesses on the ground and some of the crew.
The crew of R9334 was skippered by PO Laurie Blair RNZAF and consisted of a typical mix of Commonwealth nationalities - Nav - FSgt Jake Giacomelli RCAF, BA - Sgt. Tom Whitelock RAF, FE - Sgt. Frank Johnson RAF, WOP - Sgt. W. H. Clayton RAF, Mid Upper Gunner - Sgt Ronnie Zambra RAF and Rear Gunner - Sgt Clark Barker RCAF. They were one of nineteen crews that had just completed the course on Stirlings at 1657 Conversion Unit at Stradishall and were posted to 149 Sqn effective 18 December 1942.
At 1815 hrs on 30 December 1942 the crew took up R9334 for a 3 1/2 hour Bullseye. On 3 January 1942 they took the same aircraft up at 1750 hrs for bombing practice at Rushford Bombing Range. Upon returning to base at 1910 hrs the aircraft was instructed by Flying Control to land on runway 24. After reaching 400 feet of altitude on final approach, the pilot realized that the drift was too great for him to land. Accordingly, he told Control that he was overshooting and would land on runway 02 which was more into the wind. Assisted by the bomb aimer, Tom Whitelock, Laurie commenced the overshoot procedure on the Stirling.
A shallow ridge separated the village of Lakenheath from the airdrome. Tom Burrows was on duty in the crash tender this night; parked next to Flying Control located on this ridge near the end of runway 24. They always parked here since it was possible to view the entire airfield including the dispersals. Tom remembers hearing the engines open up as the pilot commenced the overshoot and seeing it pass by very close to them, barely clearing the ridge. It then vanished into the night followed by complete silence.
At this point the Stirling gradually lost power on both inboard engines. Flaps were still partly extended and the undercarriage was still down as they were operated from an auxiliary on one of the engines. The aircraft was in a squashing attitude and gradually sank with the pilot unable to do anything about it except keep it straight and level. As they flew beyond the runway toward the unsuspecting village of Lakenheath, the descending Stirling's main tires were ripped off by high tension lines along the village's High Street. This set the aircraft on fire and, as I always remember my father telling me, the wings knocked off the chimney pots from some council houses. The aircraft continued to descend until it ploughed into the far end of the Lakenheath Playing Field near Undley Road. Altogether, the whole incident was over in seconds from the time the pilot started to overshoot.
SAA member Harold Howarth remembered the crash very well, since at the time he was on his way into Lakenheath village. He heard the aircraft pass over and he hardly paid any attention to it until he heard the engines' note alter at a much lower height. Shortly afterwards he heard the unmistakable sounds of a crash landing. He made his way to the crash site quickly to offer assistance.
Mr. M. G. Rutterford was with his wife sitting by the fireside when suddenly they heard a tremendous rushing noise, almost like a tornado. Upon opening his front door, he saw an awful mass of flames. The thorn hedge 40 yards from their bungalow was blazing fiercely, 20 yards beyond lay the dying Stirling. At the time many of his neighbors thought that the Stirling had crashed onto his house. He ran across the road and into the field where the aircraft was fiercely burning.
Mr. B. Flack was milking in the cow yard of his farm house next to the Rutterford bungalow. He later told his daughter, Mrs. J. Barker ( no relation to the RG), who was present in the house at the time of the crash, that the Stirling looked like the devil coming out of the sky. He threw out his milking pail and lantern and ran to get his family into the ditch at the back of the house. He was afraid that the aircraft could have had bombs on board. Mrs. Barker told me that they never did find either the pail or the lantern afterwards. She remembers her father being particularly concerned that the family keep the doors closed to observe the blackout regulations - all this with a Stirling blazing almost in the front yard! Mrs. Barker's aunt suffered a heart attack when she heard of the crash - she had thought that the aircraft had hit her sister's house!
Sheer luck determined that the Stirling came down in the Lakenheath Playing Field as the pilot could see nothing in the darkness as the aircraft sank towards the ground. With the main wheels ripped off, and the aircraft alight, it was fortunate that it did not break up as it struck. Laurie Blair felt that the squashing attitude of the aircraft contributed to the comparative safety of the crash landing. The stubs of the undercarriage ploughed into the field as she ground to a halt in front of Mr. Rutterford's home.
When the aircraft struck, the pilot was thrown forward in his seat and struck his head but he remained conscious. My father was slumped unconscious over his navigation table. The bomb aimer who was in the second pilot's seat at the time of the crash was also thrown forward violently, as he was seen to be unconscious and draped over the control column. The armor plated door which separated the W/Op and the FE from the rest of the forward crew members slammed shut and buckled upon impact, effectively cutting off the forward crew. Ammunition was going off and the fire was beginning to get a good hold. Blair tried to open the armor plated door but had no success. The FE, Frank Johnson, described the crash as an "unearthly experience". He suffered a broken bone in his ankle but was able to evacuate the aircraft quickly through the rear of the aircraft. He and Clark Barker, the RG, then realized that Ronnie Zambra, the Mid-Upper, was still inside. After helping him out, they all headed under a nearby tree. By this time the nose of the aircraft was burning fiercely and could not be approached.
When Mr. Rutterford arrived near the aircraft he met his longtime friend, Mr. Frederick Sharpe Bullen whom he told to be careful upon approaching the crash. Mr. Rutterford returned to his house to get his protective tin hat and to put his lamp out in case of explosion. By the time he returned to the aircraft, Mr. Bullen had already assisted two of the forward crew to safety. The citation for the British Empire Medal which he received for his actions states that " the aircraft was burning fiercely, ammunition was exploding in all directions and there was a danger that the petrol tanks might explode. (He had no idea whether or not the aircraft carried any bombs.) With difficulty he managed to open the escape hatch and assist a dazed and injured airman to safety. (This was likely my father.) He returned to the burning wreckage to help another airman to get away who was dazed and in danger of being burnt. ( This would have been the pilot.) Mr. Bullen sustained slight burns. His brave action, which led to the saving of life, is worthy of high praise."
Laurie Blair collapsed shortly after he cleared the aircraft and recovered consciousness in the cottage of Mr. and Mrs. Flack. Mrs. Barker remembers clearly the chaos in her parents' house that night with it being full of RAF personnel. She also remembers the look on the face of one of the crew that suffered concussion. Wing Commander Michael Waase, the squadron commander, was present and informed Blair that my father was all right but that Tom Whitelock had been killed on impact. Mrs. Barker's mother, Mrs. Flack subsequently received a letter of commendation from the RAF for her efforts in tending to the injured crew.
The RAF crash tender had arrived within a few minutes and soon the fire, which was contained to the cockpit and nose of the aircraft, was out. Mr. Bullen and Mr. Rutterford then assisted RAF personnel in removing the body of Tom Whitelock from the cockpit floor onto a stretcher. He was later buried in Manchester.
As Harold Howarth made his way towards the sound of the crash, he could see a light glowing in the distance. After scrambling through some hedges he could see through the trees, figures silhouetted against the flames. By the time he arrived the crew had escaped from the wreckage so he walked around the area just in case someone was lying injured on the ground. It was at this time he noticed quite a bit of parachute gear lying about in the grass although it was not easy to spot. For some reason, he stooped to pick up a few small, charred pieces of parachute silk and rigging lines . He was also dismayed by the actions of some of the local girls in that they were actively searching for parachutes so that they could no doubt use the silk in making items of clothing. Thanks to Harold, I now have in my possession some of those bits of the burnt parachute.
Guards were quickly posted around the crashed site and no unauthorized personnel were allowed near. The surviving crew members were taken to hospital on the base, since all received various minor injuries. Laurie Blair did not return to the squadron for a month since he received a gash on the head requiring 27 stitches. During this period, the WOP, Clayton, chose to crew up with FSgt F.A. Pearson. This was a fateful decision for him as he was killed in EF330 on 12/13 March 1943 when it was shot down by a night fighter at Bergh, Netherlands during a raid to Essen. The remainder of the crew was also offered the opportunity to recrew but they chose to stick with their skipper and all but Ronnie Zambra survived the war. He died in August 1944 while flying re-supply drops during the Warsaw Uprising with 31 Sqn SAAF out of Foggia, Italy. As the rear gunner on a Liberator he was the only one to bale out when the aircraft was shot down by the Russians but was too low for the chute to open. He was buried in Warsaw.
Frank Johnson spent at least 14 days in the hospital recovering from a broken bone in his ankle. Apparently on the night before the crash, Frank went partying with another crew. In order to return to base they misrepresented themselves and used service transport. A WAAF turned them in and they were all placed on a charge and recommended for Court Martial. Frank had to continue flying due to a shortage of crews in the squadron and was involved in the crash. While the others were sentenced to 14 days detention Frank was permitted to serve his 14 days while in the hospital!
A month later they flew as a crew again; Laurie Blair did four 'second dickey' trips, and they commenced their operational tour on 27 February 1943 with a gardening op to Bordeaux.
© COPYRIGHT - David Giacomelli (author) - dgiacomelli@home.com
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(From Dave - "I still think that somewhere out there is a photo of R9334 in Lakenheath village, similar to the one of BF325. Could you send me the address of the local paper? I will write to them and ask them to publish my plea for such a photo." Can anyone else help?)