Halifax II BB309 crashed Slaglille Mark 17/9 1943.
The aircraft belonged to RAF 138 Sqn Bomber Command and was coded NF-T.
T/o 18:29 Tempsford. OP:SOE Neon 3 dropping zone Obraz 108 in Poland.
Returning from Poland after having dropped 2nd Lt M.Kryszezukajtis and
B.Augustyn at Obraz 108 Halifax BB309 was attacked by a Ju 88C-6 night fighter of 11./NJG
3 crewed by Pilot Leutnant Richard Burdyna, Bordward. Obergefreiter Leo Klotz
and Bordfunker Obergefreiter Fritz Merten and controlled by radar station
Seehund based at Tybjerg. The Halifax was then flying at 200 ft.
The Halifax was damaged and Pilot F/S Tadeusz Miecznik PAF tried to crash land the
aircraft at 04:45 hours but hit a house which started a fierce fire.
The wreck in the house
The rear gunner AG Sgt Roman Puchala got out of the aircraft unharmed and was soon
made POW by the Wehrmacht.
Later on the same day he was sent to Dulag Luft in Oberursel for interrogation.
After about a week he was forwarded to Stalag Luft VI Gross Tychow and later to
Stalag 357 Thorn/Fallingbostel.
Flight Engineer
Sgt Wladyslaw Barzdo PAF, Navigator F/Lt Wizenty Wasilewski PAF, Wop F/S Julian
Michalski PAF and Air Gnr.Sgt Wladyslaw Patlewicz PAF all died in the crash and
were buried in Slaglille cemetery at three o`clock in the morning of 18/9 1943
by members of the Wehrmacht together with Co-pilot.Sgt Eugeniusz Kasprzak PAF
who had been taken to Ringsted hospital where he had died from his wounds later
the same day.
(Victoria Moore via Lidia Szuster)
Wop F/S Julian Michalski PAF
(Via Wojtek Matusiak)
Julian Michalski
(Via Wojtek Matusiak)
(Via Wojtek Matusiak)
(Via Wojtek Matusiak)
Wincenty Wasilewski
Also the pilot F/S Tadeusz Miecznik PAF had been brought to Ringsted hospital
suffering from a broken arm and leg. After a while the Germans saw him fit to be
moved to Germany but on 7/11 at 22:00 Marius Petersen and Jørgen Wibolt helped
him escape thru the window of his room. He was taken to København and after two
days he was sailed to Sweden by Erling Kiær.
Eleven persons were sleeping in the house which the Halifax hit. Three adults
and 2 children died in the fire.
It should be mentioned that the JU 88 which had shot the Halifax down was hit by
return-fire and circled
the area at very low level and hit some threes in Bjernede skov forrest and
crashed at 04:47 hours. The pilot died outright and the two crew members died
later on the same day in Ringsted hospital.
Link
to Ju 88
See also from television
(Bob Cobley MBE)
(Bob Cobley MBE)
The graves in Slaglille cemetery
Every year a ceremony is held in honor of the fallen airmen
and of the family who died when the aircraft hit their house. September 2015 the
ceremony was attended by Victoria Moore, granddaughter of F/S Julian Michalski,
along with her husband and their two boys. After the ceremony they had the
opportunity to meet with grandchildren of the Christensen family.
(Lidia Szuster)
(Lidia Szuster)
(Lidia Szuster)
(Lidia Szuster)
(Lidia Szuster)
Sources: OLCB, LBUK, Police report, T-501,UA, RL 19/457,RL 8/91-94, FAF, “De
fandt en vej” by Bjørnvad, Wojtek Matusiak.
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