RAF airmen in Visgaarde
The incident
During the Second World War, a British bomber aircraft crashed in the night between 23 and 24 April 1942 at 3:07 a.m., approximately 200 metres from Visgård. The pilot was killed. The remaining six crew members saved themselves by parachute.
The aircraft was returning from an attack on Rostock. Over the Flensburg Fjord, near Egernsund, it was illuminated by searchlights and fired upon by the Flensburg air defence. The left engine caught fire, and the pilot gave the order to abandon the aircraft. He himself was unable to escape and perished in the burning wreckage.
Avro Manchester [A]. The type was improved by increasing the wingspan and equipping it with four Spitfire engines. The result was the finest British bomber aircraft of the Second World War: the Avro Lancaster.
The aircraft’s final moments
The burning aircraft carried out a manoeuvre resembling an attempted landing. At a height of approximately 20 metres, it suddenly lowered its nose and crashed.
Crew – sequence of events
Sgt N. S. Lewis and Sgt J. C. George managed to bail out seconds before the crash. Their parachutes were found at Visgårdvej 4 and 6. They were taken prisoner near Bolderslev around 11 a.m.
P/O T. Prescott Decie, P/O N. J. C. Pollock and Sgt I. Hamilton sought shelter at farms in the area. Later in the morning they were apprehended by the police and handed over to the German authorities at the Ortskommandantur in Aabenraa.
Sgt J. H. Paton was captured at around 8 a.m. the following day near Immervad, north of Hovslund.
Funeral
P/O H. M. Stoffer was buried on 2 May 1942 at 7 a.m. from the chapel at Aabenraa cemetery together with three other airmen who had been killed in aircraft crashes near Holbøl and Store Jyndevad.
The deceased pilot was P/O Harry M. Stoffer, aged 20.
Crew – names and roles
ZN S
23/24 April 1942
• P/O H. M. Stoffer – Pilot / captain
• P/O T. Prescott Decie – Second pilot
• Sgt J. H. Paton – Navigator
• Sgt I. Hamilton – Wireless operator
• P/O N. J. C. Pollock – Air gunner / Front
• Sgt N. S. Lewis – Air gunner / Mid upper
• Sgt J. C. George – Air gunner / Rear
Purpose of the memorial plaque
The purpose of this plaque is to convey the historical events at the site.
Eyewitness accounts and extensive information about the crash can be found at the Kliplev Local Museum.
Erected by the Aviation History Group