IRISH LUFTWAFFE TUNIC

[Rosselsprung]

Well done Justin, great research!
My roots are West Cork..(-"Wessht Cark, Boy!")and my mother tells of how in
1943 the JU88 that flew into Mt Gabriel overlooking Schull roared in just over the house,
they stayed out watching the plane as it flew on and a few seconds later impacted at high speed with the mountain, no survivors. The mountain was covered by a thick cloud bank which when it comes down totally obscures it from view, and in a very short while the local defence force volunteers were climbing the slope to the crash site. The 88 had disintegrated and any wreckage left was almost unrecogniseable. One of the volunteers, spotting a flying
boot protruding from the vegetation, went to investigate but thats all that was there, a
boot with foot still in situ...The children of the town would usually scavenge aluminium
from any wrecks to make rings, souvenirs etc but the story goes that when they examined
their loot soon after it was so bloody they threw it into the sea... visitors to the site may still
see the odd glint from the odd shard of metal but thats all that remains as a site memorial
to the young airmen who met an untimely and sudden end on the slopes of that beautiful and rugged hillside far from home all those years ago. My grandfather was in the LDF then and took part on the day.
Good luck with your research!
Rgds Rosselsprung

[SchnellMeyer]

Thank you Rosselsprung , your story sounds very interesting also .I have also a file on this crash , which in due course I can share with you if you want?

[Tychsen]

SchnellMeyer - Thanks for the photos of the JU-88 , by all means post some up - would be intersted to see them.
Attached some aviation research done by myself , all or mostly flying boat related.
http://www.wehrmacht-awards.com/forums/ ... +boat+base
Unfortunately you need to subscribe to Wehr. Awards to see the photos.
The thread is appox. 24 pages long.
Attached some photos with A Southern connection.

Sgt Guy Wilkinson from the 201 squadron Sunderland which crashed on Mount Brandon , August 1943.

The funeral of the crew at Irvinestown Church of Ireland, as you can see from the recent photograph little has changed save the passge of the burial party.



Today.


"They shall grow not old as we that are left grow old, age shall not weary them nor the years condemn".

Today


This Sunderland was one of several being sent on a daylighht patrol over Biscay , a 423 Sunderland following them down watched them "just disappear from the radar screen".

[SchnellMeyer]

That is most interesting Tychsen especially since the Sunderland in your post crashed on Mount Brandon which is only 15 miles from my home .I am well aware of this crash as it was one of four military planes to crash there during WW2 .The crash that is of most interest to me is the FW200 Condor "F8+KH" , Werk Nr. 0016 which crashed on the mountian on August 20 , 1940 .All the six crew survived and one is still alive and well .I have contact with Kurt and his family .

[Rosselsprung]

I read once that when the forces of the state arrived to "take in" the new arrivals to Co. Kerry he/they were bundled away for a while until the aircrew's reception was over...an early incarnation of the Cork/Kerry tourism board?