Brunssum, The Netherlands – On Saturday, 5
th October,
representatives of the British military community serving in Brunssum gathered at the town’s war memorial 'Verstoorde huisraad’ for a memorial service, commemorating the crew of Lancaster bomber R5701.
Headed by Group Captain Michael Dutton, Royal Air Force (RAF), from HQ JFC Brunssum, and the Mayor of Brunssum, Ms Wilma van der Rijt, members of the British community of Brunssum and the general public remembered the British bomber crew that crashed in Brunssum on 5th October 1942. All 7 crew members on-board died and are now buried in the Jonkerbos Cemetery, near Nijmegen.
The Lancaster of 97 Squadron RAF, a famous bomber aircraft flown by the Royal Air Force during the Second World War, had taken off from the RAF airbase Woodhall Spa that day for a bombing raid on Aachen. The crew was experienced and the pilot had already flown 35 missions. However, weather conditions were extremely poor, with thunderstorms and heavy icing. Over the south of the Netherlands, the aircraft also encountered heavy anti-aircraft fire and attacks by night fighters. The exact cause of the crash has never been determined. Most likely, the Lancaster was hit by anti-aircraft fire. The memorial. 'Verstoorde huisraad' was erected at the very place the plane crashed.On this 82
nd anniversary of the crash, the Dutch and British communities at Brunssum remembered the sacrifice made by:
Flying Officer Neville Briant Flying Officer Leslie Dorward Flying Officer Kenneth Harrison Sergeant John Dawson Sergeant Augustus Desmond Sergeant Kenneth MacKay Sergeant Albert Musgrave
Music during the ceremony was performed by the Brunssum Military Wives Choir. Captain Martin Street from JFC Brunssum led the memorial service, supported by the Reverend Major Michael Jenkinson, Chaplain to His Majesty’s Armed Forces, Global Support Operations, North West Europe, and Father Vincent Goulmy, priest of the parishes St Gregory the Great and St Joseph in Brunssum. Gp Capt Dutton and Mayor van der Rijt laid the wreaths on behalf of the local British military community and the town of Brunssum.
