including
Woolwich & Districts
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Messerschmitt Bf 109E crash -
Wickham Lane (Fanny on the Hill)
Whilst collating the
records of Civilian War Dead Records, at c.1994,
I came across the mortuary record of a German
Pilot "Albert Friedmann". These showed that 2nd
Lieu Albert Friedmann of the German Air Force
was burnt, had baled out and found dead in a
nearby field on Gibson Farm. He came from
Leipzig Neusdolf. He is buried in Bexleyheath
Cemetery service grave E492.
The
crashed Messerschmitt Bf 109E in Wickham
Street.
(Click on photo for a MUCH larger view)
.jpg) |
The plane, a yellow nosed
Messerschmitt Bf 109E, crashed in the front
garden of a cottage on the verge of a roadway in
Wickham Street on Sunday 20th October 1940.
Shortly afterwards I was
walking with the Eynsford Walking group and
chatting with Peter (I've forgotten his surname)
and mentioned this incident. He stated he had
seen this aircraft crash site; he was 10/11 at
the time. A photo was taken and published in a
local newspaper, his father saw this photo and
Peter was given a smack for playing truant.
On returning to the Bexley
Local Studies Centre I searched and found the
attached photo which was published in the Sidcup
Times on 25th October 1940.
Around this time I bought
a copy of "Kent at War" by Bob Ogley, and on
page 79 is printed the same photo but adding the
fact that the plane was shot down by Pilot
Officer Bryan Draper of 74 Squadron.
Ken Costin
Roger Munden
writes:
My Father, Harold Munden, was in the
A R P and the Civil Defence in the Second World
War. He was an Engineer in the Woolwich Arsenal
and they were working on a secret gun mum said.
One day he saw a dog fight between a
Messerschmitt and a Spitfire. Dad said the
Messerschmitt should have shot the Spitfire down
but either he run out of bullets or his guns
jammed,the Spitfire got the better of him and
shot him down. As he was spinning down one wing
broke off, both parts of the Messerschmitt
landed in the allotments at the Upper Wickem
Lane, Plumstead as the road bends round to the
right on the way to Welling, In the side of the
allotments was a First World War Nissan hut and
the wing fell between it and a tree and never
knocked a branch off. When my father got there
the local policeman was there, father looked in
the cockpit the pilot had half of his face shot
away and had a big row of medals on his chest.
rogerdmunden@hotmail.co.uk
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