Friendly fire WWII

[Laurent Rizzotti]

Incident on 7 December 1944:

A curious record of a standby call for the lifeboat exists in the Station records for the 7th Decemeber 1944. At 8:15pm the Coxswain George Kelly, received a call from the Coastguards at Ramsey requesting the crew immediately assemble and standby. A little over an hour later a second phone call stating that the crew could stand down as the 'position of the destoryer was OK'. The destroyer involved and the nature of its difficulties is not recorded.
However , A Corkills' Dictionary of Shipwrecks off the IoM records that on the night of 7th December 1944, the 190 foot long, steamship Glenmaroon, of Belfast, was bound from Larne for Ellesmere Port, with a cargo of empty petrol cans.
She was about 22 miles east-southeast of Douglas Head when through the darkness and snow squalls came the noise of an aircraft engine, approaching closer and closer. Incredibly the unknown aircraft attacked the Glenmaroon, causing damage to the starboard side of the vessel and started a fierce fire as well as holing the ship. The Glenmaroon began to settle. The lamp trimmer was cut off on the foredeck by the fire, so climbed the port rigging of the foremast and slid down the preventer wire from near the masthead, and managed to get past the fire. Three crewmen were lost when the ship foundered. The destroyer HMS Clare picked up Captain Adair and the survivors.
It has been subsequently discovered that the attacking aircraft was British and had attacked the Glenmaroon by mistake.

Source:
http://www.portstmarylifeboat.org.im/Harrison.htm

A search on CWGC (using Geoff's search engine) finds the three lost crew, Fireman John Dooley, Fireman Christopher Myers and Able Seaman John Redmond.

Best regards

[Brian]

Thanks for that, Laurent

Now, we need to find out which RAF unit involved.

Hopefully someone will provide additional details.

Cheers
Brian

[Laurent Rizzotti]

On 12 January 1945 Marine aviators operating from CV USS Essex shot down an USAAF B-24 off Indochina: http://www.airgroup4.com/book/indx/index18.htm

No ID of lost aircraft there but some extracs of reports by Marine airmen.

Best regards

[Thierry K]

incident on 4 April 1945
Four P-51 D of 354th FG/353rd FS flying low were hit by allied armored vehicles. Lt Earl Marshall flying 44-63732 reported he was hit but still following his leader just before to disappear in a cloud formation.(macr 13845)
From Steve Blake's Pionner Mustang Group History

[Leendert]

Re post 583 by Laurent: victim was B-24J 42-73249 of 308th BG/374th BS, pilot Lt Robert E. Churgin, lost on a long range patrol off Indochina (Cam Ranh Bay and up) on 12 Jan 45.

Regards,

Leendert

[Brian]

Thanks guys

Great stuff!

An excellent resurgence of friendly fire incidents.

Cheers and Happy New Year.

Brian

[Observer1940]

Hello Brian

I have not been religiously following this thread. Therefore, I don't know if you have this one or not. However, an Eric Carter was on the Jeremy Vine BBC Radio programme around midday yesterday 10th January 2012 about his 2nd World War service flying Spitfires and he recalled being shot at by the ground over Liverpool.

I presume you have been through the Crash Logs by Smith and also those by Dr N. Roberts compiled in the 1970s.

I wished, I had kept a separate list of such incidents, as I have come across quite a few references over the years amongst TNA files, some in RAF / AM files dealing with actions / Policy against the GAF or with "enemy" in the file title!

Regards Mark

[Boomerang]

Hello Brian:

I don't think I've seen the following incident reported before, but it is quite a job to confirm that. It's from a secondary source, but what better place to look for more information than here?

Franz Kurowski's Panzer Aces includes the following in its account of Franz Bake's service. The book dates the incident as taking place early on 13 July 1943 and involved the headquarters staff of the 6th Panzer Division, taking part in the Kursk offensive:

"The headquarters staff of the 6th Panzer Division hurried outside to watch the attack. The Stukas bombed the forward Russian lines, while the following He 111 bombers dropped heavy bombs on the troop concentrations in the rear. At the end of the attack one He 111...dropped its bombs when directly over the headquarters of the 6th Panzer Division. All of the officers and commanders standing the open were either killed or wounded... Total casualties from the disaster were fifteen dead and forty nine wounded.'

There are names of some of the killed, including a Major von Bieberstein, commander of the 114th Panzer Grenadier Regiment.

Hope that's of some use.

Finally, IMHO Panzer Aces is full of absurd stories pitched at 12 year olds - it's not on my recommended list!

Cheers

Don W

[Brian]

Thanks for the latest, Mark and Don.

Much appreciated.

Cheers
Brian

[Laurent Rizzotti]

Hello Brian,

Don't remember to have read it here. On 15 April 1941 an Italian Ba.44 (MM.60423) was shot down in error by a CR.42 over the Albanian front.

Source (in Italian):
http://www.alieuomini.it/catalogo/de..._catalogo/22/3

Best regards