Halifax DT581, Hoar Side Moor, Todmorden.
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Halifax DT581, Hoar Side Moor, Todmorden.
2 of the 7 airmen on board this Halifax were killed in the crash. They were Sgt Campbell and Sgt Whyte. The positions of the crew is not known, beyond PO Getcliffe being the pilot and Sgt Whyte being the wireless operator/air gunner.
The Halifax was returning to base at RAF Snaith near Selby, from a mine laying operation (known as ‘gardening’ in RAF parlance) off the Freisian Islands on the night of January 21st 1943.
There’s not much left. A few fragments of mostly molten metal. The square object is a piece of armour plating.
Crew;
Pilot Officer Richard Donovan Getliffe
Sgt A Campbell
Pilot Officer Edward Burt Chatfield
Sergeant Allan Campbell
Sergeant George Hugh Whyte
Sergeant G J Merritt
Sergeant E R Smart
Grid reference SD 93635 29714
Photos from visit March 2022. The piece of armour plating has been nicked since my fist visit.
That’s a hefty bit of armour plating !
It is a small set of remains – the heather and ground seem to have recovered well
Sad that people feel the need to remove things like that~
Agree with redrocker about the removal of these relics.
A bit off course for Snaith?
We have a Halifax crash site in our village – there’s absolutely nothing left there – it’s a shame something couldn’t have left as a memorial to the 8 lads that died.
Thanks everyone. Yeah, it is sad that it happens. One reason for my obsession with photographing these places.
[http://www.flickr.com/photos/highy/]
Well observed. They were off course, having navigated back by dead reckoning, but I don’t know why.
why would anyone trudge a piece of metal over a moor just to have a morbid souvenir?
One thing you notice with all these crash sites is how mother nature always recovers the ground or leaves very little to indicate what had happened there many years ago. Armour plating…very heavy bits of metal and a helluva weight to carry on ones back for a souvenir, best left alone where it fell is what I would say to who ever took it.
Removing remains from these sites is sadly inevitable. From the moment the aircraft crashed, they would be guarded until anything of military value had been removed. Then people move in. It must be a basic human instinct, to want a souvenir, a piece of history all to themselves. It’s just a pity that some people still want to remove this stuff now when there’s so little left.
Details of the crew
Pilot – P/O Richard Donovan Getliffe RAFVR (137196).
Flight Engineer – Sgt Alexander Campbell RAFVR (1071521).
Navigator – P/O Edward Burt Chatfield RAFVR (136339).
Air Bomber – Sgt Allan Campbell RAFVR (1498151), aged 22, of Ushaw Moor, Durham. Buried Waterhouses Cemetery, Brandon and Byshottles, Durham.
Wireless Operator / Air Gunner – Sgt George Hugh Whyte RAFVR (995669), aged 22, of Bainsford, Falkirk, Stirlingshire. Buried Selby Cemetery, Yorkshire.
Air Gunner – Sgt John James Merritt RAFVR (1252255).
Air Gunner – Sgt Reginald Ernest Smart RAFVR (939687).
Thanks Sean
I first visited this crash site in 1972 and have been many times since.
In the 1970s it was said that the weather forecast for this mission was for a slight headwind on the way back from the target, but in fact there was a slight tailwind – hence the aircraft overshooting RAF Snaithe and being so far inland.
Later in the war the navigator, Burt Chatfield, was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.
He was again taking the fight to the enemy when on 11th June 1944 and was aboard Mosquito DZ608 when it was shot down over Germany, survived, and was taken Prisoner of War.
USAAF B-24 Liberator 42-50668, which crashed at Black Hemeldon, 2 miles or so to the west of DT581, was also said to be off course due to an inaccurate weather forecast.
What incredibly brave people they all were.
Indeed they were David. Thank you for the additional information.
Ian