Walrus L2261 1939

[D G Brown]

In a June 2007 thread there is discussion about the loss of Walrus L.2261 - 711 Sq on HMS Sussex FTR from recce patrol in S.Atlantic, shot down by Me.109's (sic) 31.10.39. P.O S M Bird, Lt C H E Ormiston & L/A W H Brown all MIA.

Telegraphist and Air Gunner WH Brown was my Uncle and I'm trying to get a clearer picture of what was happening.

There is no evidence that the Walrus was shot down, only that it never returned from a recce. What is the probability that the Germans were in the area, and if so, where did they come from, land or boat? Would an enemy plane be involved or a ship's guns?

I assume that plane failure is also an option, with landing on the sea being highly risky.

I presume that the Germans were trying to interrupt shipping. The war is only 6 weeks old, were they that prepared?

Do ships logs exist that contain any more detail?

Any clues to what HMS Sussex was doing or general knowledge around the assignment to the S Atlantic fleet will be very much appreciated.

[Brian]

Hi DG

I don't know from where the suggestion that Bf109s were involved (they were not!). My conclusion is that it was lost to non-operational causes. I mention this briefly in Volume I of Flying Sailors at War, due to be published next month by D&V.

Cheers
Brian

[D G Brown]

Thanks Brian, the previous thread clearly came to the conclusion that there was no evidence for the shooting down by Bf109s.
You'd have to wonder why a fruitless 3 day search was necessary if someone not on the plane knew of the German planes. There's no reference to the information coming from German records.

[D G Brown]

The ship's log for HMS Sussex mentions the following:
Tuesday 31 Oct 1939 0935 Flew off aircraft.
1325 a/c 090(degrees) to search for aircraft.
Subsequent days record the continuing search for aircraft, til Friday 3 Nov at 1600 "Abandoned search for aircraft". Assumed deaths of ...

[John Beaman]

There are no Luftwaffe claims for anything on 31-Oct-39. There are several claims on the 30th, but none for a Walrus.

[D G Brown]

Thanks John, useful information for me.