On Tuesday 12 December 1944, Royal Canadian Air Force Handley Page Halifax B Mk V LL541, code ZU-O, crashed on Pen-y-bwlch, on the hills west of Rhayader and Cwmdauddwr, above the Elan Valley.
The aircraft was attached to 1664 Heavy Conversion Unit and had taken off from RAF Dishforth in Yorkshire on a daylight training and cross-country exercise to Cardigan Bay and back. The crash happened at around 1.00 pm. All eight Canadian airmen on board were killed.
The Crash
LL541 was flying with another Halifax, ZU-K. At around 13:00 hrs, while over Wales at about 18,000 feet, the mid-upper gunner of ZU-K saw LL541, flying behind, suddenly drop as if beginning a corkscrew manoeuvre. It then appeared to go almost vertical before starting to recover around 3,000 feet below.
The aircraft was then seen to dive into cloud and was lost from sight. On the ground, a Royal Observer Corps observer, Mr T. Price, saw LL541 come out of cloud at approximately 3,000 feet over the high ground north of Rhayader. The aircraft was shedding large pieces and appeared to be breaking up in the air before it came down on Pen-y-bwlch.
Earlier accounts also record the aircraft being seen over Rhayader in distress, struggling to gain height, with parts reportedly falling from it. It crashed heavily on the south side of Pen-y-bwlch hill shortly afterwards.
What May Have Happened
The exact cause of the accident is not recorded with certainty. Aviation Safety Network lists the accident as a loss of control leading to structural failure. One suggestion that the pilot may have suffered oxygen deprivation, causing the aircraft to enter a dive and overstress its frame. This remains a suggested explanation rather than a confirmed cause.
Crew of Halifax LL541
The crew recorded for LL541 were eight Canadian RCAF airmen. The Halifax normally carried seven crew, but on this flight was an extra navigator aboard.
| Name | Rank / Service No. | Role | Age | Family Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gerald Lawrence Lister | Pilot Officer J/40697 RCAF |
Pilot | 22 | Son of Odbur Earle Lister and Katherine Florence Lister of Amherst, Nova Scotia. |
| Ernest Henry Brautigam | Flying Officer J/40697 RCAF |
Navigator | 19 | Son of Henry Richard and Edna Brautigam; grandson of A. J. Milton and Sarah Milton of Upper Capilano, British Columbia. |
| David Levine | Flight Sergeant R/85078 RCAF |
Bomb Aimer | 23 | Son of Benjamin and Bella Levine of Swift Current, Saskatchewan. |
| James Harold Preece | Flight Sergeant R/184114 RCAF |
Wireless Operator | 20 | Son of James N. Preece and Rosina Preece; husband of Glenna E. Preece of Ferris, Ontario. |
| Frank Willmek | Sergeant R/168352 RCAF |
Flight Engineer | 23 | Son of Mike and Mary Willmek of Mondou, Saskatchewan. |
| Allan Fairbairn McMurtry | Sergeant R/250838 RCAF |
Flight Engineer / Extra Crew | 22 | Son of Clarence and Vera McMurtry of Winnipeg, Manitoba. |
| John Sven Overland | Sergeant R/270919 RCAF |
Air Gunner | 19 | Son of Olav and Gunhild Overland of Preeceville, Saskatchewan. |
| Gordon Grant Goehring | Sergeant R/204000 RCAF |
Air Gunner | 21 | Son of Edward and Donalda L. Goehring of Regina, Saskatchewan. |
After the Crash
The recovery work continued for around a week. The crew were recovered from the hillside, along with sensitive equipment such as radios and other important aircraft components. The wreckage was largely cleared from the hillside in the week following the crash.
Today, the crash site is said to be marked by a visible scar on the hillside, with only small fragments remaining. One wreck-site account also records that some parts have been displayed in Rhayader Museum, although little remains at the crash location itself.
The crew were buried at Chester / Blacon Cemetery, which had been designated as a regional RAF cemetery in 1943. Many aircrew who died on missions or training flights over western Britain were buried there, including many Canadian servicemen.
80th Anniversary Memorial
On 12 December 2024, the 80th anniversary of the crash was marked at the crash site on Pen-y-bwlch. Canadian flags, remembrance crosses and a wreath were placed among the remaining fragments of wreckage in memory of the eight Canadian airmen who lost their lives there.
An 80th anniversary memorial service was also arranged at St Clement’s Church, Rhayader, for the Canadian airmen who died when Halifax LL541 crashed on the hills west of Rhayader. The venue had originally been St Bride’s Church, Cwmdauddwr, before being changed to St Clement’s.
