C-47 #43-30719 Plaque
Details:
Attached on the center of the south side wall of the parking lot together with some other plaques. It is next to the C-47 #43-30719 crew plaque. Plaque
A grey, oval shaped plaque commemorating the crash of the C-47 #43-30719 in December 1943, inscribed in English. The crew members were interred in the Lisnabreeny Former American Military Cemetery in England. The cemetery closed in 1948 and their remains were exhumed and transferred.
From irishamerica.com:
The C-47 “Skytrain” played a vital role throughout the war as a workhorse plane. The cargo transporter provided a wide range of duties such as carrying paratroopers, towing combat gliders, and delivering vital supplies – often behind enemy lines.
On December 16, 1943 at 10:30pm the plane departed from Port Lyautey in French Morocco bound for RAF Station St. Eval in southwest England. The nine-and-half hour path took them mostly over open water, including the Bay of Biscay, where German aircraft frequently patrolled; as a result, Allied planes operated under strict radio silence. Prior to reaching this airspace, the C-47 was scheduled to change course at the halfway point near Cape Finisterre in northern Spain. But for reasons never fully explained, 43-30719 headed due north for Ireland and directly into the eye of a brutal winter storm.
At approximately 7:00 am on a cold, dark morning, the crew found themselves above County Kerry – home of the highest summits in the country. Lt. Scharf presumably dropped altitude in search of recognizable landmarks, unaware that they were flying dangerously low in an area of 3,000 ft. peaks. Heading southwards direction, the C-47 slammed into a north-facing ridge. All men were killed in the crash.
Monument Text:
DOUGLAS C-47 SKYTRAIN
43-30719
CRASHED NEAR HERE
17 DECEMBER 1943
Commemorates:
Units:
437th Troop Carrier Group
9th Squadron, 63rd Troop Carrier Group
US Army Air Corps
Wars:
WWII
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