Update Sept 8th - LK147 Stirling 196 Sqn- Mission completed

[Oggie2620]

That is a really good book to get Gunnar. You might also be interested in some Stirling pamphlets for sale on ebay at the moment which are quite nice and reasonably cheap.
Dee

[Bengt Fransson]

Hello Gunnar or anyone else!

I'm investigating the flying accident (LJ 899) at Lake Röjden on the Norwegian-Swedish border during the liberation of Norway, May 10, 1945. However, I would like to know if there is any litterateur (English or Norwegian) who covers the Operation Doomsday and Apostle as such. I need to put the accident in perspective of the over all picture at the time.

I don't mind if it’s written in Norwegian!

Best regards

Bengt Fransson
Karlstad, Sweden

[Stirling Project]

Hi Bengt

Welcome to the Forum. I'm sure someone will be along to help you with your request

regards

John

[Bruno]

Hello Bengt,

Welcome on board!
Here is below an extract of the excellent book of Dennis Williams 'Stirlings in Action with Airborne Forces'.
I often read about Operation Doomsday in specialized books about 38 Group.
There would be a book sold on the web named 'Operation Doomsday' but it is written in a description of it :
"Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online."(!)
Regards.

Bruno

[Mary]

Gunnar
Thanks for all the detail you have posted.

I've contacted a few members of the Stirling Aircraft Society who served in 196 Squadron in 1945.
They were often known by nicknames so any photos of the RAFVR airmen would be very helpful.

I'm also trying some family history contacts.
I have made contact with a distant relative of Lionel Gilyead.

[Gunnar]

Gunnar
Thanks for all the detail you have posted.

I've contacted a few members of the Stirling Aircraft Society who served in 196 Squadron in 1945.
They were often known by nicknames so any photos of the RAFVR airmen would be very helpful.

I'm also trying some family history contacts.
I have made contact with a distant relative of Lionel Gilyead.

Dear Mary,

There you are - I have got all your positive e-mails through Mollie Holst, so I think I am as updated as I might be. I can`t wait for your final "breakthrough". As Mollie might have told you, this has been a great experience and journey allready, as we have made contact with the relatives of 5 of the 20 men onboard LK147. And every family will attend from 2 to 8 relatives at the commemoration on May the 12th this year. This is turning out to be a really big event! The progress has been beyond my beliefe, but on the other hand - from now on until May is a very short period. But I know that you, me and the other relatives are spending a lot of time behind the computer, at least I am...

I have got your e-mail, and I will send you a crew photo of 6 men I just got from some of the relatives. I believe that the two unidentified persons on the picture are Flight Sergeant Lionel James Douglas GILYEAD 21 and Flight Sergeant David WELCH Wireless Operator (age not recorded).

I`ll send you a mail in just a few minutes.

Regards,
Gunnar

[Gunnar]

Hello Gunnar or anyone else!

I'm investigating the flying accident (LJ 899) at Lake Röjden on the Norwegian-Swedish border during the liberation of Norway, May 10, 1945. However, I would like to know if there is any litterateur (English or Norwegian) who covers the Operation Doomsday and Apostle as such. I need to put the accident in perspective of the over all picture at the time.

I don't mind if it’s written in Norwegian!

Best regards

Bengt Fransson
Karlstad, Sweden

Hello Bengt my neighbour from Sweden!

I am so happy to hear that you will dig into the story of LJ899. When I started up with LK147, I thought for a moment that I would include LJ899 and LK297 as well, but to track down the relatives of the men onboard LK147 has taken so much effort and time. I hope that you manage to do make a simmilar commemoration at Lake Røgden, or at least manage to track the family members, find som reports, eyewitness account, letters, diarys, and so on.

I am not shure what information you hold allready Bengt, according to "Operation Doomsday". I have got a 50 page Magazine that was made in 1995 by Captain Harald Schram and sold at the Airforce Aviation Museum at Gardermoen, Museumsvegen, 2060 Gardermoen http://www.akersmus.no/flysamlingen/ The Magazine has got information on both OP Doomsday, and the crash of the three aircrafts on May the 10th. I can send you a copy of this Magazine, just send me your adress in a PM.

And you have to visit the Museum soon, not far from where you live, and there is a small OP Doomsday exhibition at the Museum as well.

Other usefull websites:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Doomsday

http://ktsorens.tihlde.org/flyvrak/rogden.html (I have talked to the author behind this website, just send him an e-mail)

http://www.paradata.org.uk/events/norwa ... n-doomsday (look espacially at the document page - reports about OP Doomsday)

http://s590.photobucket.com/albums/ss35 ... /Stirling/

I would very much like to be updated on you work, Bengt!

Regards,
Gunnar

[PAFG]

Gunnar and Bengt,

Great work keeping alive the memory of these tragic accidents - amazing to think F/O Atkinson was flying a four-engine aircraft with only a few hours experience on type and just days after a crash in UK!

Good luck with your respective research, I look farward to following the stories.

Cheers,

Richard

[Gunnar]

Gunnar and Bengt,

Great work keeping alive the memory of these tragic accidents - amazing to think F/O Atkinson was flying a four-engine aircraft with only a few hours experience on type and just days after a crash in UK!

Good luck with your respective research, I look farward to following the stories.

Cheers,

Richard

Richard!

Thank you very much for your reply and your interest. Yes, this has been an amazing journey so far. I started up with relatives of three of the men, and now 3 months later we have found relatives of 7 of the 20 men, both Australia and UK. And these relatives is now engaged and determined to find the rest, so It is a great international "searchteam" out there looking through all kinds of sources. It is very difficult, and all archives needs "next of kin" enquieries to give any information.

So It is back to good old investigation and also examening family trees in UK from the early 1900`s... Mary Ghrist in Stirling Assosiation has done an absolutely fantastic job so far, helping us in this search. We are now in contact with different local newspapers, located in the same areas as we know the men came from during WW2, regarding to the Casualty details found on the Commonwealth war graves website. I also belive there will be an article about this accident and "where are you now?" in the RAF News soon.

It is only four months left before the comemoration at Gardermoen, so this is a race againts the clock. Nearly all of the relatives we have found to the 7 men, wil be represented at Gardermoen on May the 12th, and I belive the number today is about 20 relatives attending, comming all the way from Australia, and ofcourse UK. Fantastic.

If you have any ideas of how to find the rest of the men or have any contacts, mainly from the Border regiment, please let me know.

Regards,
Gunnar
"searchteam leader"

[Gunnar]

Hello,

Allmost 4 months have passed since the Commemoration at Gardermoen Airfield was arranged on May 12th 2012. The 7 month research became a very exiting and fantastic journey, and thanks to Mary Ghrist in the Stirling Aircraft Society, this fantastic forum, local newspapers across the UK that wrote an article about the story and research, relatives found that got involved in the research, etc, we managed to track the relatives of 16 of the 20 men who perished in the LK147 aircrash at Gardermoen Airfield, May 10th 1945 during "Operation Doomsday", the liberation of Norway.

As many as 40 relatives came to Gardermoen Norway on May 12th and attended the Memorial. Sisters, daughters, grandchildren, nieces and nephews. It became a very emotional weekend as the relatives visited the crash site and the Cemetary made close to the crash site for the first time in their life. The relatives came all the way from Australia and UK.

The British Ambassador from Oslo, the Australian Ambassador from Copenhagen and the Australian High Commissioner stationed in London were present on this day. Two soldiers from His Majestys Kings Guard played a trumpet signal, as the sun were shining and the three Nations National flags waved in the wind; UK, Australia and Norway. The organising team had managed to stop and redirect the international airtraffic that normaly fly just across the Memorial area during landing and take off. All you could hear was the birds song. A Norwegian and a British Priest conducted the Ceremony, and all the relatives stepped forward and put down a red rose on the Memorial stone and plaque for each and one of the 20 men.

The relatives also made a visit at the Vestre gravlund Civil Cemetary where the 20 men rest today.

For those who are interested, here is a short video that tries to sum up some of the Doomsday story in 6 minutes. The video contains extracts from interviews I made with two WW2 RAF Veterans, Pilot Douglas John Coxell (91) and Flight Engineer Norman Shepherd (87). They both took part in the Operation Doomsday, and they also came to Norway and attended the Memorial. Mr. Coxell served as a Pilot in a Halifax Aircraft, and also the first allied who landed on Norwegian soil on May 9th, the day after VE Day, after 5 long years under German occupation. How about that! Mr. Shepherd served as a Flight Engineer on a Short Stirling in the 196 Squadron, the same as LK147, and Shepherd was on his way to Norway on the faithfull day May 10th 1945. His Aircraft got the recall signal and turned back to base across the North Sea due to the very bad weather conditions across the southern part of Norway.

Three Sort Stirling Aircrafts crashed on May 10th 1945 during Doomsday; LK147, LK297 and LJ899. 48 Airmen, Officers and Soldiers perished, including the Air Vice Marshall Scarlett-Streatfield (LK297). The 48 men had survived the War through many dangerous missons, but they never got to enjoy the fruits of their hard work and sacrifise.

The video: https://vimeo.com/48027267

Pictures and information from the Commemoration: https://www.facebook.com/LK147?ref=hl

Kind Regards,
Gunnar
NORWAY