Vickers Wellington HX737, Donegal
Early on the morning of Sunday, 28th February 1943, the people
of the Falcarragh area in County Donegal were preparing to go to
mass and could hear the sound of an aircraft circling around the
area. It would later be reported that an aircraft had crashed in
the area known as Meenderry or Meandarragh, a short distance
inland from the town of Falcarragh. The crash location was among
turf banks in the townlands of Tullaghobegley Irish and
Sruhanreagh.
mention the sumary report, lack of prior
sightings or hearing, include mention of the LOP's
The Irish Army report into the crash is very sparse in details
due to the nature of the crash. Among the small number of
reports submitted was this from Commandant J Power, officer
commandign the G2 section of Western Command.
“A British Wellington Bomber crashed
at Falcaragh at approximately 09:15 hours on 28th February,
1943. The aircraft was completely destroyed and the crew of
six were killed. The remains of four bodies were recovered
from the wreckage, on the date of the crash, and the other
two on the following day. The bodies were so terribly
mutilated and burned that it was found necessary to procure
chests and sheets in which the remains might be placed in
order to hide then from the public eye while being recovered
to Rockhill and until suitable coffins could be obtained.
When the military arrived on the scene they found that
the I.B.F. were on guard there and had done excellent work
in the recovery of the bodies. Mr O’Boyle the District Staff
Officer I.B.F. was in charge of the Party there. He had his
men to the scene of the crash in cars hired from Mr Mr
Michael Mulhern, Gortahork. He also purchased a bottle
of Whiskey as stimulant for the men employed at the gruesome
work. Another bottle of Whiskey was supplied by the
O/C., 17 Battalion for those working at the coffining of the
remains that evening.
As the crew of the Wellington is usually six a search
was made in the locality for the missing pair in case they
might be at large. An effort was also made to dig under the
nose of the plane which was buried deep in the bog and to
ascertain if they were underneath. This proved unsuccessful
that evening.
On the following day (1st March) a party left Rockhill
to continue the search at the scene of the crash. They found
the other two bodies, burned beyond all recon ignition, and
buried deep in the bog. The same procedure as used on the
previous day had to be adopted and two further bottles of
Whiskey were purchased for those engaged in the recovery
and collection of the remains.
The task all through was a most gruesome one and the
O/C., 17th Battalion and the men who carried out the job
deserve much credit for the manner in which it was
completed.
The names of the four members of the crew who were
identified were:
1. No:
1051848 Sgt Cambell,
J.C.
2. No: 1213640 Sgt
Court, L.A.
3. No: 11440165 Sgt
Wall,
4. No: 1333354 Sgt
Gutterridge.
”
On the 22nd of March 1943 Captain M Cumisky of the Irish Air
Corps submitted a memo to the Quarter Master General of the
Department of Defence with the details of the efforts taken by
Army and Air Corps personnel at the site of the crash.
I have the honor to submit report in
connection with above mentioned crash.
The aircraft was a Wellington MK. 1 aircraft fitted with
Pegasus Engines. It appears to have dived steeply into a bog
and was completely burned out and destroyed. The crew of six
were killed. The engines of the aircraft couldn't be seen
but several separate cylinders were lying around. 4 Browning
Machine Guns and 2 Vickers K. Machine Guns, all serviceable,
were collected as well as about two hundred rounds of
ammunition, all damaged. About two tons of scrap was loaded
on the trailer and the remainder was dumped into the hole
dug by the crash and buried there.
It was learned that the owner of the property was a Mr
Philip Duggen of Lower Bealtoray, Cortahork, Co. Donegal and
that, due to illness he had not been near the scene of the
crash and would there fore have had little extent of the
damage caused. The remainder of the engines were embedded in
the face of the trench recently dug for cutting turf and the
presence of scrap would render it impossible to cut any more
turf from a thirty foot length of this face. It is
considered by the salvage Officer that £10 or £15 would
compensate the owner for the loss of turf from this part of
the bog.
Personnel Employed
One Officer - 3 days
One N.C.O. - 3 days
7 Men - 3 days
3 N.C.Os and 7 men from 17th Battalion for one day.
Details of transport used will be
submitted later on approved pro-forma.
In a related but separate report, Cumisky mentions that any
scrap from the aircraft was brought back to Baldonnel Aerodrome,
the HQ of the Irish Air Corps.
The Irish officers who attended the scene felt it was important to commend the soldiers and officers of 17th Infantry Battalion who had the task of sifting through the wreckage of the bomber for the remains of the dead airmen. For this reason, three bottle of Whiskey were purchased from the Non Commishioned Officers mess at Rockhill Military Post.
The unit records for 7 (C) OTU do not carry great detail and the deaths of the crew of HX737 are recorded on just two lines of the Operations Record Book (ORB) among some mundane administrative entries.
These records are held by the United Kingdom National Archives in Kew, London. It is worth noting that on the day before the crash of HX737, no 7 (C) OTU suffered the loss of another Wellington bomber on a training flight in Scotland. HX779 crashed into a hill side in Kintyre killing Sgt D F Sutterby RCAF, F/Sgt J N Mittom RCAF, Sgt W E Davies RNZAF, Sgt J M Wilson and Sgt H G Brooks
The only other obvious entry in the ORB relating to the crash is a note that Sgt Gutteridge's funeral took place locally on the 4th of March. The remaining five men were returned to their families for burial. Carnmoney Cemetery Belfast were able to say from their records that James Gilmore was buried there on the 3rd of March. His parents are buried with him, having died in 1953 and 1965. John Steen Campbell was also interred in the same cemetery following the crash.
The relatives of the dead airmen have been kind enough to
supply the following information along with the details obtained
from the Commonwealth War Graves Commission website.
The crew were stationed with 7 (Coastal) Operational Training Unit based at RAF Limavady in Northern Ireland. This training organization was used to build together crews for Coastal Command's operational Squadrons. Each member of the crew would have undertaken their basic service training prior to this before going on to learn their particular trades at separate training facilities. At this stage in 1943, it is possible that some of the crew members may have done some off their initial training in Canada or another of the Commonwealth countries.
Sergeants Court and Wall would have completed their advanced training on single engined aircraft before moving on to a multi engine training unit.
John Campbell is known to have trained to become a navigator in South Africa.
The three remaining men, Farthing, Gutteridge and Gilmore would have learned their trades of air gunners and wireless operators. All would have found themselves posted too 7 (C) OTU where they formed a training crew. All would have therefore been well trained in each others trades and were in the process of becoming a crew. They may have gone on to join one of the RAF’s front line Coastal Command Squadrons flying the Wellington or Halifax patrol bombers.
The aircraft they flew was a Vickers Wellington VIII bomber
built by Vickers at the Weybridge, Surrey factory. It was
delivered to the strength of 32 Maintenance Unit on the 2nd of
September 1942, thence to 33 Maintenance Unit and was delivered
to 7 (C) OTU only on the 9th of February 1943, being with the
unit less than 20 days before the crash.
LEONARD ASHBY COURT Sergeant (Pilot) Royal Air Force
Volunteer Reserve Age: 23 Service No: 1213640 Additional
information: Husband of Joyce Enid Court, of Barkby. 
Photo from Leonards son Ian and his wife Margaret.
his dad died when he was 2, newspaper
cutting, hsi son was same age when he died
JOHN D'ARCY WALL Sergeant (Pilot) Royal Air Force
Volunteer Reserve Age: 22 Service No: 1140108 Additional
information: Son of John D'Arcy Wall and Mary Elizabeth Wall, of
Rochdale; husband of Janet Wall (nee Baron), of Rochdale.
Seeking a photo 
Sgt Wall had married only in late 1941, to Janet Baron in
Scarborough district, Yorkshire. His father, of the same name,
died on 24th October 1953, with an address at 101 Redcross
Street, Rochdale. His mother Mary Elizabeth (nee Eastham) lived
on until 26 December 1964, living also at the same address. No
next of kin is listed on her probate record. Sgt John D'Arcy
Wall was buried after the crash in his native Rochdale.
The Rochdale Observer published the sad details of his funeral
and life in their 6th March, 1943, edition: Sergeant-Pilot John Darcy Wall, only son of
Mr and Mrs Darcy Wall of 101 Redcross Street, was killed in
Northern Ireland on Sunday last. Twenty-two years of
age, he joined the R.A.F. eighteen months ago, had spent
nearly twelve months in Canada and returned home only at the
end of last year. Before joining the forces he was
employed as an assistant with Mr Robert Sheard, grocer, of
Bury Road, and before that was with Messrs. James Duckworth
and Sons. Fifteen months ago, he married Miss Janet
Baron of Deeplish Road, who is no serving in the
A.T.S. Sergeant-pilot Wall was a member of the Third
Church of Christ Scientists, Smith Street, with which he had
been connected from boyhood. The interment will take
place at Rochdale Cemetery this afternoon."
JOHN STEEN CAMPBELL Sergeant (Nav.) Royal Air Force
Volunteer Reserve Age: 34 Service No: 1081848 Additional
information: Son of Samuel and Eleanor Campbell, of Belfast;
husband of Emma Campbell, of Belfast.
Provided by Sam Christie
RONALD WILLIAM GUTTERIDGE Sergeant (W.Op./Air Gnr.) Royal
Air Force Volunteer Reserve Age: 21 Service No: 1333994
Additional information: Son of Bertie and Alice I. Gutteridge,
of Huntingdon.
Photo provided by Ronald's sister Margaret.
Sgt Gutteridge's sister Margaret who was only a young girl of
six at the time of his death sent a number of photos of him. She
was able to learn some more about her older brother through the
letters published in local papers by this researcher as people
from the town came forward with their memories of Ronnie. She
traveled to Northern Ireland on the 50th Anniversary of his
death and was delighted to find his grave well tended. She
planted there some snow drops from her garden as her little
memorial to the brother she barely knew. She recalled how he had
a sweet heart at the time of the crash and that this kind lady
wrote to Ronnie's mother for many years after the war and then
in turn to Margaret. The photo below shows Ronald with his
mother and one of his brothers.
JAMES GILMORE Sergeant (W. Op./Air Gnr.) Royal Air Force
Volunteer Reserve Service No: 1036700 Additonal Information:
(From Headstone) Aged 23, Son of Jane and John Gilmore.
Kindly provided by D Quinn, nephew of James's sister Betty.
GEOFFREY JAMES SCOTT FARTHING Sergeant (W.Op./Air Gnr.)
Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve Age: 21 Service No: 1315164
Additional information: Son of William Scott Farthing and Alice
Farthing, of 22 Aycliffe Road, Hammersmith and later Caversham,
Reading. Berkshire. Brother of Berie Leslie Scott Farthing.
Seeking a photo
Geoffrey James Scott Farthing, the family in some records going
by the surname 'Scott-Farthing' was son of William and Alice
Scott Farthing. He had one brother named Berie Leslie Scott
Farthing, named Leslie in his 1945 marriage announcement to Dona
Cerie Owen from Holyhead. The boys parents address was listed in
1945 as 53 Priest Hill, Caversham. Leslie Scott-Farthing passed
away in 1977.
If any one reading this might have any knowledge of, or photos of Sgt's Wall and Farthing, I would love to hear from you. It has proved impossible so far to contact any relatives.
Local Historian John Connaghan was very helpful with this report by visiting the crash site and providing the following photos from the crash site in the bog. As can be seen the area is rather flat.
The photo above is taken at the crash site, note the memorial plaque in the foreground. This view is taken facing roughly north.
The image above is taken facing to the south in direction the aircraft is understood to have been flying. In the background can be seen the peaks at Mount Erigal.
At the crashsite, the patch of ground is scattered with assorted shattered remains from the aircraft.