Help solve a mystery: crash location in Norway of a 1./KGr100 He111H-3 on 24.5.40

[Larry Hickey]

Hello,

Please help our EOE team solve a mystery. I've recently acquired a FB and photo coverage relating to the loss of a 1./KGr100 He111H3 in Norway as a result of a night anti-shipping mission on May24-25, 1940. Here is what we now carry as our entry in our Luftwaffe loss DB:

1./KGr.100 Heinkel He111H-3. Engines damaged by AA fire during night attack on shipping in the Lofoten Islands off Harstad and crash-landed near Mo during return flight 2.50 a.m. FF Oberfw Paul Grunau, BO Oberfw Willi Hoinowski, and rest of crew all unhurt. Aircraft 6N+BH 100% write-off. (EOE Flugbuch details)

The FB entry from the BO, Ofw Hoinowski, describes the loss, and his albums provide photos of the FL. Three of our experts have been able to decipher the handwritten Sutterlin script for the entire notes on the loss, except the exact location of the crash. Peter Cornwell, who is producing our loss DB comments: "...It is clearly somewhere near Mo-I-Rana which is midway between Harstad and their base at Trondheim but I can’t find anywhere remotely resembling what may even be an abbreviated entry?"

So here is the mystery location, which we'd dearly like to include in our DB, and provide in the captions when we publish the photos. Can anyone decipher this location? There is a very small settlement in the background of one of the crash pictures, so it was near some habited place, although it was probably very small, and may not even appear on maps. Who can solve this mystery for us? Should I offer as grand prize for the solution a fully restored, original He111 from the Norwegian campaign?

http://www.servimg.com/image_preview...=18&u=11993385

Regards,

[Brian Bines]

Larry,

The KG100 book just gives the location as Mo, this does come up on Google as Mo Vindafjord which is between Bergen and Stavanger,

Regards

Brian Bines

[Larry Hickey]

Brian,

Thanks for the research. This still doesn't seem to match the German writing.

Regards

[Brian Bines]

Larry,

Try Mo i Rana on Google Maps it comes up in Northern Norway 40 miles south of the KG100 target of Saltdal for the 25th May, and 180 miles NNE of Trondheim

Regards Brian Bines

[Larry Hickey]

Brian,

Thanks for your further comments. The place we're looking for that I posted the photo of the handwriting from the FB appears to begin with an "F." That is the problem. We're aware of "Mo-i-Rana" but it doesn't seem to fit the word or words that I posted from the FB. Any further ideas? We know that when a He59 came in to pick up the downed crew, they flew out of "Mo," according to the FB, so it has to be somewhere in that vicinity.

Regards,

Regards,

[Brian Bines]

Larry,

The only 'F' I could make out was Flostrandveien which appears to be a road around a smaller Fjord to the west of Mo i Rana. Perhaps the word you posted is a short or a local version picked up by a downed Flier on the quick.
KG100 book just states ' Eine Besatung musste auf dem Ruckflug, wegen Flaktreffer, bei Mo notlanden '

Good Luck

Btian Bines

[Kjetil Aakra]

A mystery indeed, it is very hard to make out what the word is.

Assuming it begins with an "F" it could be "Fagerdalen" which is quite close to Mo i Rana and has has some small farms scattered about. There's also a place called "Fagerjorda!" a little further away.

However, is it possible that the first letter could be an "J"?

One tip, don't search on "Mo" as that is an extremely common place name in Norway and there are litterally hundreds of places with this name!

There's only one "Mo i Rana", though.

Regards,

Kjetil Åkra

[RT]

First letter is for sure not a F , maybe a I or J , if you could give us, larry, a bit more words of the same page we could compare, for the moment Ildoruben seems the more "look-a-like", name Hoinowski seems also a bit odd also difficult to read ??

Remi

[Khorat]

hi, as a german I will agree with remi - first letter is a J second l third can also be a o too I read Jlooruban - but be careful lot of german soldiers write a name as they heard it, so can be much different of the original name !!

khorat

[Peter Cornwell]

Thank you gentlemen. It is Illgruben about 7 miles east of Mo-i-Rana. Mystery solved.