Operation: Anti-Shipping

Date: 29th March 1944 (Wednesday)

Unit: 14 Squadron RAF (motto: أنا نشر الأجنحة بلدي وابقى على وعد - 'I spread my wings and keep my promise')

Type: Martin B-26 Marauder (1)

Serial: B117780

Code: 'T'

Base: Ghisonaccia, Corsica (2)

Location: Mediterranean Sea off Mataro

Pilot: F/O. William Cameron McDonald Aus/4505 RAAF Age 27. Killed

Pilot 2: F/O. John Walsh Lewis Aus/417089 RAAF Age 22. Killed

Nav: Fl/Sgt. Charles Manning Peedom Aus/421620 Age 24. Killed

W/Op/Air/Gnr: Fl/Sgt. Ronald Lanham Aus/421990 RAAF Age 21. Killed

W/Op/Air/Gnr: Fl/Sgt. Michael Thomas Woods Aus/421840 Age 28. Killed

Air/Gnr (rear): Fl/Sgt. Frank Raymond Lamond Aus/410349 RAAF Age 21. Missing - believed killed

REASON FOR LOSS

The Aircraft

'T for Tare' was a replacement aircraft supplied in theatre by the Americans, USAAF serial 41-17780, a B-26B-1-MA. It did not carry an RAF serial number as it was loaned or issued directly from a USAAF bomb group or depot.

The Mission - 29 March 1944

In the early hours of 29 March 1944, at Ghisonaccia airbase in Corsica, three aircraft of No. 14 Squadron received their final briefing. The mission was to locate ships suspected by British intelligence of transporting wolfram - a valuable mineral for the arms industry - from Spain to Nazi Germany along the Catalan coast.

'T for Tare', with Captain Macdonald in command, took off at 07:50 hours. Around 10:30 hours the Marauder swept along the Tarragona coast toward Barcelona harbour, which it overflew at 10:55 hours to photograph and monitor shipping. It then proceeded toward Mataro. At 11:20 hours a small vessel was spotted navigating very close to the coast, and Macdonald made the fateful decision to go and investigate.

Above Rear L-R: Fl/Sgt. Charles Peedom, F/O. William Mcdonald, F/O. John Lewis. Front: Fl/Sgt. Frank Lamond, Fl/Sgt. Michael Woods and Fl/Sgt. Ronald Lanham.

The aircraft crashed into the sea about 3 miles off Mataro, near Barcelona. There are several eyewitness reports. Causes could have been structural, engine failure, or the aircraft flew into the sea as it turned to circle the ship. Bodies recovered were buried with full military honours in the municipal cemetery at Mataro.

The Aftermath

The body of Frank Lamond, the turret gunner, was the only one not recovered - he was almost certainly trapped in his turret when the aircraft hit the water.

The locals of Mataro have taken extraordinary care of the airmen's graves ever since. A small plaque was placed in memory of Frank Lamond - the one crew member with no grave - by Peter Dawson, a boyhood friend of Ron Lanham, who has researched the incident extensively and visited Mataro on numerous occasions.

The wreck lay undisturbed until June 1994 when divers discovered the remains of the B-26 Marauder. The exact location of the wreck is known only to a small group of divers, who have chosen to keep it secret to prevent looting. The tail section was found some distance from the main fuselage, suggesting the aircraft may have broken up in flight - but only a full examination of the remains could provide a definitive answer. The mystery of what exactly happened that March morning remains unresolved.

Above rear L-R: Fl/Sgt. Charles Peedom, F/O. William McDonald, F/O. John Lewism

Front: Fl/Sgt. Ronald Lanham, Fl/Sgt. Ronald Lanham and  Fl/Sgt. Ronald Lanham (courtesy Dvid Marin)

BURIAL AND OTHER DETAILS

Air Officer Commanding
British Consulate General, Barcelona
31st March 1944

Sir, With reference to my telegram No. 97 of the 30th March, I have the honour to report that, accompanied by members of my staff, I attended the funeral of the remains of the five R.A.F. personnel, who lost their lives in the British Plane which crashed in the vicinity of Mataro on the morning of the 29th March, and which took place at 5 p.m. on the 30th March in the presence of Sr. Marti Pascual, Mayor of Mataro; Colonel Yanguas, the Military Governor of Mataro - who represented the Captain General of the 4th Region; Commander Royo, Marine Commandant, representatives of the Spanish Army, Navy and Air Force; the Colonel of the Guardia Civil; and other local dignitaries. A full religious ceremony was conducted and the coffins were all draped with the Union Jack. They have been interred in the cemetery of Mataro in niches which, in accordance with the usual practice, have been rented for a period of two years in case the relatives may ultimately desire the remains to be transferred elsewhere. All funeral charges are being borne by the Spanish Air Ministry.

The crew graves are shown on the right of this image. The locals erected a plaque in the same area to the missing crew member.

The funeral was attended by many hundreds of people and their presence can be interpreted as a spontaneous demonstration of sympathy from the inhabitants of this industrial centre of about 35,000 inhabitants. I might add that, on hearing of the occurrence, the Civil Governor of Barcelona made a personal call of condolence on me at a very late hour of the 29th March.

A very few personal effects which included a gold wristwatch, a few photographs, paybooks and a rosary, will be forwarded as soon as they have been passed on to me by the Military Governor of Barcelona. A cigarette lighter with the following inscription "J.W.LEWIS, RAAF" has been handed to me by one of the fishermen who were instrumental in picking up the bodies and it may have been the property of the fifth member of the crew whose identity, as stated in paragraph 2 of my telegram under reference, it was not found possible to establish.

F/O. William Cameron Mcdonald. Mataro Catholic Cemetery. Niche No. 66. Born on the 2nd March 1917 in Bacchus Marsh, Victoria, Australia. Enlisted on the 15th June 1939. Son of Martin Lionel McDonald (died 1917, age 41) and Amelia Jane Rebecca McDonald (nee Nunn - died 1962, age 80), of 617 Elizabeth Street, Melton South, Victoria, Australia. Epitaph: 'In Proud And Loving Memory Forever Treasured In Our Hearts'.

F/O. John Walsh Lewis. Mataro Catholic Cemetery. Niche No. 63. Born on the 24th December 1921 in Adelaide, South Australia. Enlisted on the 12th July 1940. Son of Henry Aloysius Lewis and Florence Catherine Lewis, of Toorak Gardens, South Australia. Epitaph: 'Requiescat In Pace'.

Fl/Sgt. Charles Manning Peedom. Mataro Catholic Cemetery. Niche No. 74. Born on the 17th August 1919 in Taree, New South Wales. Enlisted on the 28th February 1942. Son of Carl James Peedom (died 1954, age 74) and Florence Elizabeth Peedom (nee Lemare - died 1934, age 43); husband of Margaret Jean Peedom (nee Badger, later Rowe - died 2015, age 101), of Taree, New South Wales, Australia. Epitaph: 'So he passed over, and all the trumpets sounded for him on the other side'.

Fl/Sgt. Ronald Lanham. Mataro Catholic Cemetery. Niche No. 71. Born on the 15th August 1922 in Cowra, New South Wales. Enlisted on the 3rd September 1939. Son of Timothy (died 1962, age 75) and Olinda Lanham (nee Simpson - died 1959, age 70), of Cowra, New South Wales, Australia.

Fl/Sgt. Michael Thomas Woods. Mataro Roman Catholic Cemetery. Niche No. 58. Born on the 27th December 1915 in Mortdale, New South Wales. Enlisted on the 28th March 1939. Son of Patrick Michael and Mary Ann Woods; husband of Joyce Margaret Woods, of North Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Epitaph: 'He Gave His Life That We Might Enjoy Peace'.

Fl/Sgt. Frank Raymond Lamond. Malta Memorial. Panel 16, Column 2. Born on the 1st January 1923 in Pinaroo, South Australia. Enlisted on the 6th December 1941. Son of Francis Joseph Lamond (died 1930, age 44) and Caroline Victoria Lamond, of Granya, Victoria, Australia.

NOTES

(1) The Martin B-26 Marauder

It was an American twin-engine medium bomber that served with distinction in the Second World War. Designed by Martin Aircraft in the late 1930s, it first flew on 25 November 1940. The aircraft had a reputation as a difficult and demanding aircraft to fly in its early service life - its high wing loading and relatively small wing area earned it nicknames from trainees wary of its unforgiving handling at low speeds. However, once crews were properly trained and conversion techniques improved, the Marauder proved to be a robust, fast and effective weapons platform with a combat loss rate among the lowest of any Allied medium bomber.

The aircraft was powered by two Pratt and Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp radial engines, each producing around 2,000 horsepower, giving it a maximum speed in excess of 280 mph and a service ceiling of 19,800 feet. It could carry up to 4,800 lb of bombs or, as 14 Squadron demonstrated, a torpedo for anti-shipping operations.

In RAF and Commonwealth service, the B-26A became the Marauder Mk. I. Only 52 Mk Is and IAs were delivered to the RAF, all of which served with No. 14 Squadron in the Middle East - the sole RAF unit to operate the type in this mark. The Marauder Mk. II (B-26F) and Mk. III (B-26G) were later operated in larger numbers by the South African Air Force in the Italian theatre.

(2) Ghisonaccia Airfield

During World War II, Ghisonaccia Airfield was a military airfield used by the United States Army Air Forces. It was an all-weather temporary field built in late 1943 by the XII Engineer Command using Marsden Matting for runways and parking areas, as well as for dispersal sites. Tents were used for billeting and support facilities; an access road was built to the existing road infrastructure; a dump for supplies, ammunition, and gasoline drums, along with a drinkable water supply and minimal electrical grid for communications and station lighting. It was turned over to the Twelfth Air Force for operational combat use.

Sources and acknowledgements:

• National Archives, Kew. 
• National Archives Australia. 
• Aircrew Remembered Archives. 
• Virtual War Memorial Australia. 
• International Bomber Command Centre. 1
• 4 Squadron Association. 
• Imperial War Museums. 
• Aviation Archaeology. 
• Wikipedia.
• Paul McGiunise RAAF Archive