Hampden AD783 was part of 455 Squadron and based at RAF Wigsley. 455 Squadron was established under the Empire Air Training Scheme. It was formed for service in Europe with the RAF and although nominally an Australian squadron, its personnel were drawn from a number of Commonwealth countries including Britain, Canada, New Zealand and Rhodesia. The squadron was formally established at RAF Swinderby on 6 June 1941. The squadron received Hampden bombers and the bulk of the Australian personnel arrived on 1 September 1941 having left Australia on 15 June 1941. In February 1942, the squadron took part in an unsuccessful attack on the German battleships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau.
Hampden AD783 took off from RAF Wigsley at 22.43 on 12 February 1942 on a mine laying sortie over the English Channel. The port engine began spluttering and the pilot made the decision to turn back for RAF Wigsley, however on the downward circuit, and with the port engine now on fire whilst the plane prepared to land, it crashed, killing all the crew. During the crash, a mine had broken away from its mountings and come to rest near the stricken aircraft, shortly after, it exploded, damaging houses in Eagle. No-one from the village was injured in the explosion.
The memorial was dedicated by The Right Reverend Dr. Nicholas Chamberlain on 13 February 2022, on the 80th anniversary of the plane coming down.
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THE CACHE
Look at the memorial board, which gives more information on the crash.
The cache can be found at:
N 53 11. A B C
W 000 41. D E F
Where:
A = Number of letters in the place name the Sergeant Air Gunner hailed
B = Number of letters in the bird inside the red bubble
C = Number of times the word Nottinghamshire features
D = To how many people are special thanks given?
EF = He flew 11 operations with this squadron
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The series is dedicated to those who fought for their country. "We will remember them!”
If anyone would like to place a War Memorial Cache of your own then please do so. We would ask if you do so please contact Just-us-Two through their profile page or justustwo1013@gmail.com
so they can keep track of the numbers
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*****PLEASE NOTE IMPORTANT *****
****PHYSICAL CACHES ARE NOT ALLOWED TO BE PLACED ON THE ACTUAL MEMORIAL OR WITHIN THE BOUNDARY OF SUCH MEMORIALS. AT ALL TIMES TREAT LOCATIONS OF MEMORIALS WITH RESPECT. ****