First a historian from Holland wanted more details on the planes my grandfather photographed during his service in WWII, now a researcher from New Zealand wants to use the photos in a book he is working on. He also gave me the following detailed info about one of the photos (which no one will find interested but me, I am sure): I can provide you with a bit of background history relating to the photo – the Allies mounted an airborne assault across the Rhine river in Germany on 24 March 1945 (as a prelude to a ground assault across the river). American airborne troops landed near the German town of Wesel by parachute and in gliders. The location of the photo is at co-ords 51 40 51.51 N, 06 37 09.38 E, approximately 2.35 km N.N.E. of Wesel, in a triangular field where many of the American gliders landed. On the first evening after the assault, the night of 24-25 March 1945, the German air force mounted bombing and strafing attacks against the Allied positions across the Rhine. The aircraft in the picture was a Ju88 night fighter (usually employed in combating British night-time air attacks). It had taken off from an airfield named Paderborn with a crew of four men. In making an attack at low altitude on the airborne troops near Wesel it was hit by massed American fire and crash-landed in the triangular field (mentioned above) at 23.55 hrs local time. The aircraft slid across the ground and hit one of the parked American gliders (the glider was named ‘Nightmare’). If you look at you photo you can see this glider on the right-hand side in front of the German aircraft. I don’t yet know the fate of all of the German crew members but know from other photos taken the next morning that at least two of the four men died. I’m not sure when the hoto with your grandfather would have been taken but I’m sure that it would have probably been before the end of March 1945. --> I have goosebumps! So glad my grandpa let me tell his stories! You can read them here: therhouse/my-grandfathers-photos-from-world-war-ii/
Posted on: Fri, 25 Oct 2013 00:15:03 +0000
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