Seeking location for forced-landing of He111H-3, A1+FH, WNr.3318, of 1./KG53 on 11 May 1940, somewhere near Longwy, France

[Larry Hickey]

Hello,

There are a number of excellent photos of the above a/c both before and after it force-landed during the WC/FC on May 11, 1940. We know the plane was recovered, repaired and put back into service with KG26, only to crash in Holland during the Battle of Britain.

We now know from unit records that it was apparently hit by AA fire as it crossed the Maginot Line near Longwy, France, which is in the tri-border area of France, Belgium and Luxembourg. German records indicate that it came down in France, but one hand-written caption on the back of a photo says: "Luxembourg close to Maginot line," so perhaps it even came down in Luxembourg, although the more likely location is in France, as the Germans reported, somewhere near Longwy.

Currently this is carried in our EoE Luft loss DB as:

"May 11, 1940: "May 11, 1940: I./KG53 Heinkel He111H. Returned from sortie damaged by AA fire over Sommesous. No crew casualties. Aircraft A1+FH 10% damaged - repairable."

However, this will be revised to reflect what we currently know about this incident. The a/c apparently came down between the German and Allied lines, and the crewmen, who were not injured, reportedly stayed by the plane until a German reconnaissance patrol arrived some hours later and rescued them. The plane itself was subsequently recovered, repaired and served with KG26 until lost on 5 Sept. 1940 during a take off crash from Gilze-Rijen, Netherlands.

When we revise this entry we'd like to know the following information, if anyone can help:

1) Where precisely did this a/c force land on May 11th?

2) Who were the crewman aboard?

3) Is there any more details available on the experiences of this crew that day?

I'm planning to use this a/c for a color profile for the EoE project, and any help would be appreciated.

Regards,