Esserden Crash Site / AOP / Operation Varsity.

Discussion in 'WW2 Battlefields Today' started by Grazing, Nov 2, 2014.

  1. Grazing

    Grazing Junior Member

    Hi,

    This is my first post here and I hope I've got it in the right section.

    I'm researching my great uncle, Captain Peter Terrey Wykes. He was a pilot in 658 Air Observation Post Squadron. He was shot down and killed by friendly fire on 24th March 1945 during operation varsity.

    I have seen parts of the 658 war diary that give some insight into what happened that day. An OP from 147 Fld Regiment observed that an Auster (The aircraft he was flying) had been seen to hit the ground with its tail shot away and nobody seen to come out of the wreckage.

    A recon flight the following day by another AOP Auster identified the wreckage and two graves near Esserden. Near a small orchard. What I would really like to know is if anyone has any idea of where this orchard may be exactly? I have scoured google maps, but to no avail. It may be long gone. But there may be aerial photos of the area that may show it.

    It also puzzles me who was responsible for burying Cpt Peter Wykes and his observer LAC McNairney? They were later transferred to reichswald cemetery. Would this mean there may be a record of the site they were originally buried in?

    Any help on this would be so gratefully appreciated! I would like to visit the site if I can identify it with my father to pay our respects.

    Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to read this.
     
  2. KevinBattle

    KevinBattle Senior Member

    Welcome aboard
    Can't help with any info, but Esserden is slightly west of Rees, a town just over the Rhine crossing from Neidermormter
    It seems to be on a line of advance from Goch, if that helps anyone locate units that may have been in the area at that time.
    Seems that 658 AOP were supporting 21st Army Group.

    This site http://www.royalartilleryunitsnetherlands1944-1945.com/roll-of-honour-227.html has information about 658 during 1944 but stops short of 1945, perhaps because it seems to be a Netherlands site, but it may be of interest

    You might enquire of the CWGC if they have further details regarding his initial burial site, which might help narrow the search.

    I assume your information on the crash site being by an orchard came from here http://www.kibworth.org/Peter%20T%20Wykes.html?
    Good luck!

    EDIT : More here, http://www.rafcommands.com/forum/showthread.php?4241-Army-Air-Gunners-Bomber-Command very interesting chap!
     
  3. Buteman

    Buteman 336/102 LAA Regiment (7 Lincolns), RA

    I'm sure I've posted about this casualty before. Just trying to find the thread.
     
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  4. dbf

    dbf Moderatrix MOD

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  5. Buteman

    Buteman 336/102 LAA Regiment (7 Lincolns), RA

    Thanks Diane. That's one of the posts. 662 AOP Squadron record the incident of our own shells hitting Capt Wykes plane in their war diary.

    Here is the other one with the 658 AOP war diary. It might be worth looking at the 147 Field Regt war diary to see if they record a map reference and where exactly the casualties were buried alongside the burned out plane.

    http://ww2talk.com/forums/topic/28113-aop-air-observation-post-squadron-casualties/page-2#entry370217
     
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  6. Buteman

    Buteman 336/102 LAA Regiment (7 Lincolns), RA

    War Diary Pages of 658 Squadron posted again for ease of viewing:-

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
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  7. Buteman

    Buteman 336/102 LAA Regiment (7 Lincolns), RA

    662 AOP Squadron War Diary reporting the shooting down by our own shells.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
  8. Grazing

    Grazing Junior Member

    Thank you everyone so much for taking the time to read and respond to my post so quickly I will try and contact the CWGC to see if they have any more information. It looks like the 147 Field Regt war diary is held by the national archives, will see if this sheds anymore light.

    He did seem to have quite a varied career to say the least!

    I will post anything I find on here.
     
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  9. Buteman

    Buteman 336/102 LAA Regiment (7 Lincolns), RA

    I want to go to Kew again soon, so I'll check the 147 Field Regt war diary. I have 1944, but not 1945 and need to copy it anyway.
     
  10. Grazing

    Grazing Junior Member

    That would be so kind of you! I will keep digging in the mean time.
     
  11. stolpi

    stolpi Well-Known Member

    Grazing - I believe the plane crash near Esserden was actually photographed:

    plain crash near Esserden.jpg


    There are some contemporary maps & aerials of the Esserden area over here: http://ww2talk.com/forums/topic/50742-rhine-crossing-1945-the-rees-bridgehead-51st-highland-div-in-operation-turnscrew/

    Esserden was already captured by the 51st Highland Division. The Highland division crossed the Rhine River at Rees on the evening of the March 23rd (D - 1). Since the plane crashed inside the British bridgehead, the Highlanders or one of the follow-up units [3rd Cdn Infantry Div & 43rd Wessex] might have been responsible for the burials.
     
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  12. Grazing

    Grazing Junior Member

    Stolpi. That is incredible and very moving to see that. Thank you. I will forward this picture onto my father.

    Do you know the source of the image?

    Thank You.
     
  13. stolpi

    stolpi Well-Known Member

  14. KevinBattle

    KevinBattle Senior Member

    There looks to be a distinctive line of tall pylons or poles (overhead HV electricity cables?) following the line of a hedge (or orchard) close by at least two fairly large farm (?) buildings. The roadside from where the photo was taken (by whom?) appears to have a slight bend or T junction.
    The HT line may still exist, and with help from CWGC as to initial burial site, you may be able to locate more closely.
    Amazing that a photo existed, seems to be part of that photo album, so unit(s) might be known (or recognised by the expert Pals on here!).
    I'd guess that it was an Allied unit taking the photos and would be striking towards the east from the banks of the Rhine.

    Try this Google Earth map reference: https://www.google.co.uk/maps/place/Esserden,+46459+Rees,+Germany/@51.7724613,6.3827194,241m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m2!3m1!1s0x47c77ea1a7bf8ff5:0xec2fabe5a6100bf8?hl=en

    There seems to be an unusual green strip running through the centre of a field, crossing Esserdener Strasse and continuing as a dark brown line across the next field. Can't be sure that's an HT line but there does seem to be a small squarish structure on the dark brown line.

    Marvellous what this forum can produce, there may be other photos of the crash site.
     
  15. stolpi

    stolpi Well-Known Member

    Grazing: Attached an enlargement of the wartime map of Esserden. Please note that the small township to the northwest is called Klein Esserden (Kl Esserden).

    [​IMG]

    I hope you will be able to pinpoint the location of the graves and/or crash site; but without Map References it will be a 'search for a needle in a haystack'.
     
  16. Grazing

    Grazing Junior Member

    Thats great! Thank you Kevin / Stopli. I appreciate it is a very tall order to find the exact spot without further information,especially with the terrain being so flat and featureless. The power lines may be a good clue if they are still in existence, I will keep striving though!

    The photo of the smoke plume is incredible, I never dreamt that it may exist! It must be the infantry/artillery units who must hold the remaining clues by the looks of things. So a further research down that route seems to be the right direction.

    Thank you again gents. Your effort and knowledge is much appreciated by myself and my family!
     
  17. Grazing

    Grazing Junior Member

  18. stolpi

    stolpi Well-Known Member

    Grazing - On March 24th the 51st Highland bridgehead was not yet that deep. Esserden itself was taken by the 5th Black Watch during the night of 23/24 March. However the 1st Black Watch in the early morning was driven out of the farming settlement of Speldrop by an armoured counterattack of the 15th Pz Grenadier Division. The 1st Black Watch attempted several times to retake the township, but the Germans held on to it untill after nightfall.

    That day the area north of Esserden was a most unhealthy spot and I don't believe anybody would have dared to take pictures that close to the frontline, let alone do some mine-clearing as is indicated by the white ribbons on the fences along the roadside. The picture most likely was taken somewhere south/southwest of Esserden near the Rhine River, where engineers probably already would have done some road clearing.

    Furthermore the village of Esserden is set against the winter dyke, which is quite high. No dyke is visible on the picture, my best guess therefore is that it must have been taken somewhere close to the river bank (see area in red circle on attached map). The area around the farms of Pottdeckel (which no longer exists) and Scholtenhof may also be possible.

    ESSERDEN ENLARGEMENT 2.jpg
     
  19. stolpi

    stolpi Well-Known Member

    Panoramic view of the area south of Esserden as seen from the northern ramp of the bridge at Rees, view to the west. The Rhine River is to the left and Esserden on the right. Unfortunately the names of the locations are a bit small. I put them at the bottom of the picture. Courtesy of Nijmegen who put two of my pictures together.

    [​IMG]
    (across the Rhine River) Hönnepel Haus zu Rees Esserden
     
  20. Grazing

    Grazing Junior Member

    Thank you Stolpi!
     

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