On the recieving end
Luftangriffe auf Steinenbronn 1944 – Zeitreise
This wednesday the weather over Stuttgart was a closed cloud front. At 23.15 the sirens went off, and started the flak shooting. According to eye whitnesses the raid came in 2 waves. The 2nd wave being less powerfull. One of the bombers exploded over Steinenbronn, debry spread over a large area, some dead crew found. 1 nightfighter crashed in the woods. Pilot had tried to jump, failed and was found dead ar some distance.
This wasn't any of my Lancasters, but thanks for the information. It all adds to the general picture of events. Thank you *
-KG 44. Sqn. (RAF) / Avro Lancaster Mk. III / # ND576 / Operation Stuttgart / Abschuss durch Flak / Absturz zwischen der "Schill " und der "Strombergstraße" im Stadtgebiet Ludwigsburg (Baden-Württemberg) - Deutschland / Flight Lieutenant Fynn (P) - Fallschirmabsprung - KG / 7 gefallen
463. Sqn. (RAAF) / Avro Lancaster Mk. I / # ME573 / Operation Stuttgart / Beschuss durch Flakgruppe Stuttgart - vermutlich auch Beschuss durch Nachtjäger / Absturz am "Gröninger Weg" in Kornwestheim, nördlich Stuttgart (Baden-Württemberg) - Deutschland / Pilot Officer John Roberts / 7 gefalle
Please could you let me know where you got these two pieces of information, as the information needs updating to reflect Air Ministry findings?
Though the crash sites themselves are correct, the wrong Lancasters were attributed to them.
ME573 was the Lancaster bomber at the Ludwigsburg (Baden-Wurttemberg) crash site, and the
ND576 was at the Kornwestheim crash site. The incorrect recording which Lancaster fell at which site, was because of the body crew mix-ups. There were three investigations into this collision by the Air Ministry MREU, in London, who investigated the crash in Germany.
MRES REPORT DATED 14TH FEB 1947
MRES REPORT DATED 25TH FEB 1947
MRES REPORT DATED 22ND DEC 1947
The ME573 was 99% destroyed due to the mid-air explosion and only 7 dog tags found.
All the body pieces were collected into one coffin and buried at Ludwigsburg, and the dog tags collected. These included two bodies from the ND576 crew, (my uncle being one of them) who were buried with this ME576 crew, and an initial
incorrect assumption was made that this was the ND576 Lancaster bomber that had crashed here.
At the other crash site at Kornwesthiem, one body was identified as being from the ME573 crew and a dog tag identified another ME573 crew member, those were BA James Benzie, 20 & WOP. Stanley Palmer, 26 who were both found with the rest of the ND576 crew members Flt. Lt. John Berrington, 20 / Flt.Engr. Denis Orme, 20 / Nav. Mervyn Adder, 21 / BA. Gerald Clark, 22 / AG. Joseph Sagar, 19.
THEY were all buried at Kornwestheim.
The grave markers all confirm which bodies were buried in which cemetery, from the different sites.
It was the swap of four men which led to the initial
incorrect Lancaster being attributed to the wrong crash site, and the records you have sent me have not been updated to reflect the subsequent findings. I come across this often and I do try to put the record straight, but these are German records that were recorded at the time and presumably, the intervening years now mean it is not worth updated the records.
In the second and last report from the Air Ministry MREU findings, the location of the crash-sites was corrected, which I also have, with the location of the crash site of Lancaster ND576 now being given as
3km southwest of Ludwigsburg near the water tower at Kornwestheim. The surviving pilot of ND576 also gave his report and confirmation as to where he was picked up by the German authorities confirming Kornwestheim as the designated crash site for ND576.
I visited both crash sites during my research in Germany and was lucky to meet eyewitnesses at the crash site of ME573 at Ludwigsburg. The land was still polluted from all the fuel, incendiaries, etc., and the imprint of the obliterated Lancaster was still evident then but that was nearly twenty years ago.
Anyway, sorry for the detailed explanation, and thank you for sending it to me. The difficulty is trying to correct the information at source, but never mind. I have the proof for anyone interested. Thank you. regards Liz