My brother, F/Sgt Arthur Bradley, was the Navigator of Halifax BIII RG375 EX-R, the last Bomber Command aircraft to be lost in WWII.
He lies at rest in Kiel War Graves Cemetery along with his comrades; it was his 37th Op. Nearly six years of war was coming to an end on that night of 2/3rd May 1945 when Bomber Command carried out its last devastating air attack on Kiel. Some 290 aircraft took part and three failed to return – two Halifax’s of 199 Squadron and a Mosquito of 169 Squadron, all from 100 Group. Their crews were the final victims of the RAF’s offensive against the Third Reich. Mosquito NFXIX MM680 from Great Massingham exploded at some 23.30hrs over the target. Two Halifaxes RG373 and RG375 of 199 Sqdn, North Creake, collided over the city, scattering wreckage around the village of Meimersdorf and thirteen perished aircrew were buried in a field alongside the wall of the local cemetery. The bulk of RG373 EX-T finally came to rest in a field next to the cemetery. Three of the crew survived the ordeal.
A photo taken in November 1945 showed the location of the graves alongside the cemetery wall by a large stone: this was a memorial stone within the cemetery. Many years ago the boundary wall was taken down and the cemetery grounds extended into the field which included the area where our thirteen airmen have been laid to rest in 1945. That piece of hallowed ground, now lawned and planted with shrubs, reflects a lasting peace and tranquility for our airmen following their tragic accident.
Their remains were transferred to their final resting place at the Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery at Kiel in 1947.
They were –
W/O W F Bolton,
F/Sgt A Bradley,
F/Lt W E Brooks,
Sgt F T Chambers,
F/O K N J Croft,
W/O K A C Gavin,
F/Sgt D Greenwood,
F/O A S J Holder DFC,
F/Sgt J R Lewis,
S/Sgt J Loth,
P/O W H C Mackay,
W/O R H A Pool
F/Sgt D Wilson.
These men are all buried in the Kiel War Cemetery together with the crew of the 169 Squadron Mosquito who were killed earlier in the night.
History of 199 Squadron Operational Sorties 1944-1945
by Cyril Bradley
This article is from the Winter 2006 issue of Confound and Destroy
