Orkney High Ground
Hudson N7310 - 220 Squadron. 19/3/1941. Withi Gill, Hoy.
At 06.20 hrs on 19th March 1941 a twin engine Lockheed Hudson ploughed into rough moorland in the hills of Hoy and exploded, the Hudson carrying a crew of four was on a patrol from RAF Wick,Scotland and had strayed off course in cloud,all the crew were killed and it is understood that one of the men sent to guard the remains also died of exposure. All the airmen were recovered and are buried alongside each other in Lyness Naval Cemetery on Hoy. Some large pieces of wing and airframe still litter the site today,but it is a long walk to the site and a dangerous place to be when the weather is poor.
Pilot: Sgt.R.D.Harris. RAFVR.
Pilot: Sgt.G.E.Towe. RAFVR.
W/AG: Sgt.H.C.Street. RAFVR.
W/AG: Sgt.W.Wood. RAFVR.
Pilot: Sgt.R.D.Harris. RAFVR.
Pilot: Sgt.G.E.Towe. RAFVR.
W/AG: Sgt.H.C.Street. RAFVR.
W/AG: Sgt.W.Wood. RAFVR.
Wing section from Hudson N7310, Hudson main impact point &Main undercarriage leg : Dave Earl.
Area of crash site.Andrew Brown
Albacore BF592 - 817 RN SQN. 26/6/1942.Mel Fea, Hoy
On a delivery flight from the Evanton Storage Section north of Inverness, was BF592 a Fairey Albacore biplane. It was to be delivered to the Royal Naval Air Station at Hatston,Orkney and took off around 11.15 am. Again it would appear to be a case of heavy cloud over the isle of Hoy and a pilot flying too low to clear the hills, for the Albacore crashed above Rackwick and was totally wrecked. The body of the pilot was recovered some days later and he was buried at sea at the request of his family.
Pilot: Sub/Lt (A) J. Leggat. RNVR.
Pilot: Sub/Lt (A) J. Leggat. RNVR.
Bristol Taurus radial engine from the Albacore. Wing Structure
Albacore crash site. Photo: Andrew Brown
Corsair JT461 - 1841 RN FAA SQN. 11/7/44. Enegars.Hoy
The Vought F4U Corsair was a single seat fighter aircraft used by the Royal Navy,it could be either land or carrier based and was used extensively throughout the latter part of WW2 both in European & Pacific theatre.
Vought F4U Corsair
On 11th June 1944 a Corsair from RNAS Hatston,Orkney took off to join the ship HMS Formidable, but for reasons still unclear failed to arrive, the wreckage and the dead pilot were found on Hoy almost a week later. it was first thought the aircraft had gone down in the sea so a large search conducted over the Pentland Firth, but it would appear the pilot had flown into the high ground in cloud. The pilot,a New Zealander is buried in Lyness Naval Cemetery on Hoy. There are still a few sparse remains of the Corsair on the hill.
Pilot: Sub/lt E. de A Hewetson. RNZNVR.
Pilot: Sub/lt E. de A Hewetson. RNZNVR.
Corsair wreckage. Pilots armoured plate.
Sub/lt E. de A Hewetson. RNZNV grave. Photo: Dave Earl
Corsair crash site.
Liberator FL949 - 311 (Czech) Sqn. 1/1/1945 Cuilags, Hoy
At 22.02 hrs on New Years Day the Liberator took off from RAF Tain in the Scottish Highlands on an Anti-Sub mission over the North Atlantic, however despite warnings of high ground at the pre-flight briefing the pilot failed to gain sufficient height to clear the hills of Hoy,and perhaps also due to a slight deviation of intended track, the Liberator struck the near top of Cuilags and exploded killing the entire crew. In the weeks that followed the bodies of the airmen were removed and the wreckage buried by the salvage teams.
Above: Photo of the Liberator FL949 that hit Cuilags. Photo: MAP 12156C.
The airmen were buried with full military honours, 5 in Tain Cemetery and the other 3 in their hometowns in England. Much of the wreckage over the years has remained on site,though during the war some larger panels of alloy were recovered for scrap.
Pilot: W/O O. Bures. RAFVR.
2/Pilot: F/S M.Bodlak. RAFVR
Nav: F/S O.Mandler. RAFVR
F/E: F/S Z.Launer. RAFVR
W/AG: F/S I.K.Englander. RAFVR
W/AG: F/S A.Bednar. RAFVR
W/AG: F.S J.Zapletal. RAFVR
W/AG: SGT M.Dorniak. RAFVR.
Above: Some of the crew of FL949 who lost their lives in the Liberator crash on Hoy, Otto Mandler (Back Row Far Right) Oldrich Bures (Front Row Centre) and Antonio Bednar (Front Row 2nd Right)
Wing section and scattered wreckage. Supercharger from Liberator FL949.
Above left:William Shearer found this wing section in a garage on the Mainland, it came from Liberator FL949 on Hoy and its owner recovered it in the late 1970s It appears to have been used for target practice after the war as several .303 size bullet holes were found, unless these were caused by exploding ammo when the aircraft crashed as the Lib carried both .303 & .50 cal ammo. Hopefully it will make its way into a future museum on the island.
Above right: Data plate found at the crash site of Liberator FL949 around 30 years ago by Mr Angus Iain Morrison who used to live on Hoy. Photo: Dave Earl.
One of the 4 Pratt & Whitney 14-Cyl radial engines lays half buried at the crash site today.
Officers revolver recovered soon after the war from the B-24 on Hoy, on display at the wartime exhibition at the Orkney Museum 2010. Photo: Steve Spink.
Mixture control levers from the B-24 Liberator, on the left are levers William Shearer discovered belonging to a local man who recovered them in the 1970s, and right how they would have been in their former glory in the cockpit of a B24. Photos: Kevin Heath.
SOME OF THE CZECH CREW GRAVES IN TAIN CEMETERY.
Graves in Tain. Photo: Steve Spink
Liberator FL949 crash site. Photo: Andrew Brown.
David Earl has spent years documenting the crash sites on land around the Orkney Islands. His book ''Hell on High Ground Vol 2'' has by far the best account of the four High ground losses on the Island of Hoy. These being a Corsair, A Liberator a Hudson and an Albacore. All of these sites are worth a visit and Dave`s book gives the positions on all the aircraft and the tragic stories of how these crashes happened and the story of those lost.
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All rights reserved. Due to the immense amount of research that enabled us to build this site we would like to point out that all material on this website is owned by A.R.G.O.S though photos are credited to their respective owners. Anyone wishing to use material for their own website or any other purpose are requested to contact us first expressing their wishes. Permission will usually be granted to none profit making ventures, i.e. websites for educational and/or historical purposes, though a link to this website and acknowledgement to the original owners of any photographs will usually be requested.