(back to normality - I've been meaning to write this blog for a while)
In the Peak District, where I used to work as a countryside ranger, the dark moorland plateaus of Bleaklow and Kinder rise above 2000'. This national park is surrounded by major industrial conurbations and all their infrastructure, and is a vital recreational and natural resource to the area. It is also the site of many, many aircraft wrecks; planes descending in poor conditions and not judging their altitude correctly.
The most well-known because of its size, is the B-29 that crashed on Bleaklow on 3rd Nov 1948. The plane crashed in dense cloud killing all thirteen of the American crew. The site is strewn with remnants of fuselage, engines and undercarriage, the aerospace aluminium very well preserved, despite the hostile environment...
A memorial to the crew is still maintained by local people, and you will always see poppies and crosses there.
Among others are the C-47 that crashed on Shelf Moor in July 1945...
But I want to tell you about another plane. Lancaster KB993 of 408 Squadron, Royal Canadian Air Force. Spotted circling above the nearby market town of Glossop, it crashed in darkness on James's Thorn on the 18th May 1945, ten days after the war in Europe had ended, killing all six crew in the resulting fireball.
And 50 years later, in May 1995, our Ranger Service got a call. Local enthusiasts who record all the crash sites, and fund memorials had been in touch with the relatives of the Canadian crew, and American relatives of the C-47 crew, and organised a trip for them to come to Britain on the anniversary of their loved ones' deaths. However, the logistics of getting a host of elderly people onto the summit of the hill were beyond them. So we chartered a helicopter and provided transport and our services for the day.
It was mid May, but no spring day. The sleet was coming down, and the temperature was dropping to freezing point. We ferried relatives, old and not so old, onto the bleak hilltop where the RAF chaplain was to read a sermon and dedicate the new memorial.
Believe it or not, the Lancaster pilot's mother, Mrs Clifford, was one of our guests that day. I sat on the heather and talked to the rear gunner's wife; a diminutive lady with sparkly eyes, incongruously swamped by my big orange work jacket draped over her shoulders.
I cannot begin to imagine the emotions of these family members, thousands of miles from home, finally standing on the barren moor, in the wind and sleet, where their loved ones had died. Closure is an overused word, but perhaps, just perhaps, it was appropriate that day. I also remember happiness. They were happy to be there, finally, and united with one another to remember their loved ones. They had a lot of memories to share with each other, and us; a lot of stories to tell. I think all of us involved found it one of the most moving moments of our lives, and my Maple Leaf pin was always on my ranger jacket from that day on. That was a good day.
...on 18 May 1995... a ceremony was held on the site with some participants being helicoptered in. Foremost among these was Mrs Marion Clifford, the 91 year old mother of Flying Officer Clifford; she and other relatives being picturesquely supported by pipes and drums from the Clan Urquhart Highlanders. The North
The lower plaque reads;
UNVEILED ON 18th MAY 1995 50th ANNIVERSARY OF THE CRASH OF KB993 BY MRS MARION CLIFFORD, CANADA. ERECTED BY PAUL BOOTH AND STEPHEN LEWIS TO THE MEMORY OF THOSE KILLED.
The upper one reads;
ON THE NIGHT OF MAY 18th 1945 AVRO LANCASTER KB993 OF CANADIAN 408 SQUADRON CRASHED AT THIS PLACE.
THE CREW WERE FLYING CIRCUITS AND BUMPS
F.O A.A CLIFFORD
F.O D.A FEHRMAN
W.O M.C CAMERON
F.S C.J HALVORSON
F.S L.C HELLERSON
P.O K.B McIVER
TWENTY SEVEN DAYS LATER 408 GOOSE SQUADRON RETURNED TO CANADA.
FOR FREEDOM.
NEARBY ON THE MOOR BELOW LIE THE REMAINS OF C47 SKYTRAIN 2108982 WHICH CRASHED ON THE 24 JULY 1945 WITH THE LOSS OF ALL ON BOARD.
1st Lt G.L.JOHNSON USAAF
1st Lt E.W.BURNS USAAF
1st Lt B.W. IZLAR USAAF
Sgt T.R. McCROCKLIN USAAF
Sgt F.M MALONEY USAAF
Cpl G.R ALEXANDER USAAF
LAC J.D MAIN RAF
IN MEMORY
THEY ARE NOT FORGOTTEN
In the Peak District, where I used to work as a countryside ranger, the dark moorland plateaus of Bleaklow and Kinder rise above 2000'. This national park is surrounded by major industrial conurbations and all their infrastructure, and is a vital recreational and natural resource to the area. It is also the site of many, many aircraft wrecks; planes descending in poor conditions and not judging their altitude correctly.
The most well-known because of its size, is the B-29 that crashed on Bleaklow on 3rd Nov 1948. The plane crashed in dense cloud killing all thirteen of the American crew. The site is strewn with remnants of fuselage, engines and undercarriage, the aerospace aluminium very well preserved, despite the hostile environment...
A memorial to the crew is still maintained by local people, and you will always see poppies and crosses there.
Among others are the C-47 that crashed on Shelf Moor in July 1945...
But I want to tell you about another plane. Lancaster KB993 of 408 Squadron, Royal Canadian Air Force. Spotted circling above the nearby market town of Glossop, it crashed in darkness on James's Thorn on the 18th May 1945, ten days after the war in Europe had ended, killing all six crew in the resulting fireball.
And 50 years later, in May 1995, our Ranger Service got a call. Local enthusiasts who record all the crash sites, and fund memorials had been in touch with the relatives of the Canadian crew, and American relatives of the C-47 crew, and organised a trip for them to come to Britain on the anniversary of their loved ones' deaths. However, the logistics of getting a host of elderly people onto the summit of the hill were beyond them. So we chartered a helicopter and provided transport and our services for the day.
It was mid May, but no spring day. The sleet was coming down, and the temperature was dropping to freezing point. We ferried relatives, old and not so old, onto the bleak hilltop where the RAF chaplain was to read a sermon and dedicate the new memorial.
Believe it or not, the Lancaster pilot's mother, Mrs Clifford, was one of our guests that day. I sat on the heather and talked to the rear gunner's wife; a diminutive lady with sparkly eyes, incongruously swamped by my big orange work jacket draped over her shoulders.
I cannot begin to imagine the emotions of these family members, thousands of miles from home, finally standing on the barren moor, in the wind and sleet, where their loved ones had died. Closure is an overused word, but perhaps, just perhaps, it was appropriate that day. I also remember happiness. They were happy to be there, finally, and united with one another to remember their loved ones. They had a lot of memories to share with each other, and us; a lot of stories to tell. I think all of us involved found it one of the most moving moments of our lives, and my Maple Leaf pin was always on my ranger jacket from that day on. That was a good day.
...on 18 May 1995... a ceremony was held on the site with some participants being helicoptered in. Foremost among these was Mrs Marion Clifford, the 91 year old mother of Flying Officer Clifford; she and other relatives being picturesquely supported by pipes and drums from the Clan Urquhart Highlanders. The North
The lower plaque reads;
UNVEILED ON 18th MAY 1995 50th ANNIVERSARY OF THE CRASH OF KB993 BY MRS MARION CLIFFORD, CANADA. ERECTED BY PAUL BOOTH AND STEPHEN LEWIS TO THE MEMORY OF THOSE KILLED.
The upper one reads;
ON THE NIGHT OF MAY 18th 1945 AVRO LANCASTER KB993 OF CANADIAN 408 SQUADRON CRASHED AT THIS PLACE.
THE CREW WERE FLYING CIRCUITS AND BUMPS
F.O A.A CLIFFORD
F.O D.A FEHRMAN
W.O M.C CAMERON
F.S C.J HALVORSON
F.S L.C HELLERSON
P.O K.B McIVER
TWENTY SEVEN DAYS LATER 408 GOOSE SQUADRON RETURNED TO CANADA.
FOR FREEDOM.
NEARBY ON THE MOOR BELOW LIE THE REMAINS OF C47 SKYTRAIN 2108982 WHICH CRASHED ON THE 24 JULY 1945 WITH THE LOSS OF ALL ON BOARD.
1st Lt G.L.JOHNSON USAAF
1st Lt E.W.BURNS USAAF
1st Lt B.W. IZLAR USAAF
Sgt T.R. McCROCKLIN USAAF
Sgt F.M MALONEY USAAF
Cpl G.R ALEXANDER USAAF
LAC J.D MAIN RAF
IN MEMORY
THEY ARE NOT FORGOTTEN
VIEW 3 of 3 COMMENTS
And it seems I've been away from my internet access at just the wrong moment, your previous blogs really did make me feel for you. Your daughter is beautiful, it's the job of any parent to instill the lessons in their children that will stay with them for life. It's hard to get to know someone through the internet, but just from blogs like the one written above I'd have little doubt that you're exactly the sort of person who is well set to do so. Without knowing for sure, I would say your daughter is lucky to have a dad like you. I'd also say that no person is perfect but you have many redeeming qualities that shine through.
If you want to talk feel free to PM me. x
As you can tell, my head is much too big to fit into my normal size hat today. That is if i wore a hat.