Wimbotsham service marks 80 years since Lancaster bomber crash

The descendants of the crew of a Lancaster bomber which crashed near Wimbotsham in 1943 attended a special 80th anniversary memorial service at the weekend.

The disaster, which happened on the night of September 29 following a bombing raid over Bochum in western Germany, saw all but one of the Pathfinder crew lose their lives – and all aged between just 19 and 26.

The young men’s plane had been returning to its base at Warboys near Huntingdon, when it came down in bad weather.

According to the sole survivor, the bomber hit 62 trees and was torn into three pieces by the impact.

Rear gunner Sergeant Arthur Orchard, then 20, survived after the plane’s rear turret broke away from the rest of the fuselage.

He suffered a broken leg and spinal injuries, and spent a year in recovery, but returned to fly missions during the rest of the war and afterwards took part in a series of victory fly pasts held in the USA in 1946.

The memorial service, held on the village green last Saturday, remembered Sgt Orchard, who passed away in 1998, and the six who died in the crash – Flight Sergeant Frederick Ray, the pilot, aged 26; Flying Officer Sydney Smith, navigator, 21; Sergeant William Lineham, flight engineer, 19; Sergeant Norman Winterburn, wireless operator/air gunner, 21; Sergeant Frederick Dickens, air gunner, 20; and Sergeant David Booker, air bomber, 20.

Among those visiting West Norfolk for the dedication of a memorial plaque was Mark Orchard, Sgt Orchard’s nephew who travelled all the way from Bermuda in the Caribbean.

He was joined by Simon Orchard, from Luton, also Sgt Orchard’s nephew.

Also attending were Sgt Booker’s relatives Robert Booker, who is his cousin, and Gill Hooper and Julie Dudley, his nieces.

Carolyn Seymour, who organised the event, said: “The service was really lovely and very poignant, explaining the men’s ages and how they died.

“They had taken severe flak damage over Germany and lost all of their instruments. They had no compass or altimeter.

“They hit fog when they got to Downham Market and were flying low, thinking they were above the cloud level, but the fog was right down to the ground.

“They were highly skilled people but when they hit the trees it was too late.”

Carolyn also took the relatives to visit the site of the crash, which she said they found very moving.