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SIGNALS TO THE HILL
Beinn Eighe yet again!
This is just an interim reply to say “Thank you” for the No. 9 Autumn 2001 copy of OtH.
What a bumper issue it is, too! What with The Millennium Challenge 2000 Walk, the MRS North Ridge Expedition to Everest and the Cairngorms search for the two USAF F-15s, there is enough potential material to fill a book!
I was naturally interested in the letters from Joss Gosling, and wondered if the relatives of the crew of the Lancaster who have been in touch would be able to throw some light on the origins of the original plaque.
I, too, have been scouring the Letters columns of the TGO and Scots Magazine during the past few months to check on the follow-up to your articles. Apart from anything else, it has created a wealth of interest in the incident and a realisation of the tremendous problems faced by the Mountain Rescue Service in the hills.
Ken Tabor, Kirby Misperton, Malton, N. Yorks.
C The letter below appeared in the August 2001 issue of The Scots Magazine, and is reproduced with acknowledgments to the writer and the editor. Thanks too to Pat Baines who spotted the letter and sent it on to us.
It was with great interest that I read the article ‘Impact on Beinn Eighe’ by Frank Card in the March issue.
I remember well the crash as my brother was a signaller on the aircraft - Sgt J W Bell. I recall my sister-in-law phoning from Findhorn to tell us that the plane was overdue and I had to break the news to my mother and father who were out at the time. We were living at Kettleholm, three miles from Lockerbie.
The tragic event changed our family’s lives ever after. My mother, of course, was hit hardest, as Jim was her eldest son. We waited in anguish for any news, hoping that the plane had perhaps landed elsewhere, but with the discovery of the wreckage our hopes were shattered.
I would like to say a word of thanks to Mr Gosling and any other members of the Kinloss Mountain Rescue Team. I realise now that they were poorly equipped and weather conditions were terrible.
I have an article from the Scottish Daily Express (9/11/64) by Gwen [Moffat] entitled ‘The Shrine of Beinn Eighe’, where she points out the deficiencies of the rescue team. However, I know that the team did everything possible to reach the wreck of the plane when it was obvious that none of the crew could possibly have survived.
I also noted the fact that there were two memorials to the crew - one on the mountain and one at RAF Kinloss. I have been to Kinloss Abbey on two occasions, one the year after the crash and in June 1980, when I was in the UK on holiday. The graves of my brother and his crewmates are beautifully maintained which is a great comfort.
To Mr Card I would like to give my sincere thanks. It is good to know that after 50 years the crew is not forgotten, and to know that the crash was instrumental in upgrading not only the Kinloss Mountain Rescue Team but the other RAF teams as well. I think that this is the greatest memorial to the crew.
John Bell, Kwa Zulu Natal, South Africa
B17 Crash
Herewith as promised two prints of the stainless steel memorial plaque which I photographed in Wales last year.
The plaque, which measures some 3ft x 2ft, is situated on the northern flank of the Cadair Idris range by Craig Cwm Llwyd, overlooking Barmouth bay - a very fine view, incidentally. It is attached to a drystone wall set back from a footpath leading off a lane which climbs up from Dolgellau, some six miles away. It has the appearance of having been placed there very recently.
An American couple from New York, friends of mine, were with me at the time and were much taken by the memorial, which we came upon purely by chance. They hazarded a guess that
S/Sgt Teed O Smith was probably from the Deep South. It struck us as odd that no mention is made on the plaque as to the body or individual who caused it to be put there - “Questor Sheffield” presumably refers to the makers.
The crash commemorated by the plaque is clearly that described in Whensoever pp.60-62. You presumably based your account on information provided by Tom Scudamore, who not surprisingly found difficulty in recalling the (often esoteric) names of the victims. Also, I respectfully take issue with your statement that Craig Cwm Llwyd is “about 100 feet from the summit of Cadair Idris”; both in terms of linear distance and vertical height, 100 ft is a bit off target! To be pedantic, Craig Cwm Llwyd is marked as 1790ft and is about five miles due west of Pen-y-Gader (the summit of Cadair Idris), which is 2927 ft.
John Quartly, Waltham Abbey, Essex
Tom Scudamore had been at RAF Llanbedr (moving from Llandwrog) only 24 hours when help was requested by the USAAF in June 1945. A B-17G Flying Fortress from 511th Bomb Squadron, 351st Bombardment Group, on its way from Polebrook to RAF Valley - the first leg of its journey back to the USA - had lost radio contact. The team
started from Llandwrog and collected Tom Scudamore at Llanbedr. They found the crashed aircraft on Craig Cwm Llwyd at about 1200ft. Above is the memorial to the Flying Fortress’s 20 crew and passengers, all of whom died in the crash. Does any reader know who put it there? We’d like to know. Editor
Land Rover Recovered
Many thanks for the copy of On the Hill. It was nice to see my little piece, and also to read about some of the characters that I have heard about. I have enclosed some photos of my old bus. Maybe they will help the next Land Rover owner who pesters you for information! [See Nick Percival’s article ‘Romeo Returns’.]
The restoration is about 90% done now. All I need to finish it off is a radio mast on the back (very expensive - £10), some spotlights to the front, and a couple of ‘compressed gas’ hazard plates on the body. We seem to have started a trend in the military vehicle world, with several other emergency service vehicles starting to appear at shows. Flashing blue lights and two-tones certainly make a change, although both Nick and I probably hear enough at work!
If you ever wanted our wagons on show anywhere, I’m sure Nick would be as happy as I am to help out, to show people how things used to be.
Robert Short, 303 Cannhall Road, Leytonstone, London E11 3NL. 020 8534 4246.