They were
on the way to their target, flying over the
Dutch province of Groningen, when they were
intercepted around 23.00 by a German night
fighter, piloted by oberfeldwebel Paul
Gildner. Gildner had been successful
when only twenty minutes prior he shot down
a Blenheim of 110 squadron (with crew F/L
Dickinson DFC, Sgt Charles William Fry and
Sgt Robert Mower) which crashed west of
Groningen, near Tolbert.
Shortly
after shooting down the Blenheim he engaged
the Wellington flown by Sgt Elder and his
crew over the town of Jispinghuizen.
Machinegun fire was heard among the roaring
engines of the planes. The Wellington was
hit and started to burn.Soon after the
Wellington crashed on the eastside of the
main road running from Vlagtwedde to Ter
Apel.
Only the
nose turret gunner, Sgt Douglas Wilmott
Waters, managed to bail out of the burning
plane. He was taken prisoner.
Ofw. Gildner
and his wireless operator Uffz. Müller
inspecting the tail section of the
BU-M at the crash site. (Nachtjagdarchiv
Horst Diener, via Ab Jansen in Wespennest
Leeuwarden, vol. I, pg 116)
The rest of
the crew was buried at the Esserveld
cemetery in Groningen, where they were laid
to rest together with the Blenheim crew that
was shot down only minutes earlier.
Sgt. Bagley was 21.
He is buried at Plot RP. Row Class 2. Coll.
grave 26.
(picture by
Wim Bastiaanse)
