P-38 42-12920 - Croston - 15th January 1943

Over the years, despite the attentions of number of groups, the crash site of an American fighter close to the channel of the River Douglas at Croston remained something of an enigma. Though it was agreed that the aircraft concerned had been a P-38, its identity & that of its pilot remained a mystery and without even a firm date for the incident there was little to go on. As so often is the case luck played a major part in our solving this mystery, though a strong emphasis on communication and sharing our knowledge with other enthusiasts played a major role as well.

The 15th January 1943 was cold & grey and towards late afternoon low lying mist began to cover the land, when residents became aware that a low flying aircraft was above them apparently flying up and down the course of the river Douglas between the villages of Croston and Tarleton. Some witnesses could even see the glow of lights in the cockpit as the aircraft continued its wide circling course for more than an hour - it was obvious to everyone that the pilot - Kenneth Burnett from the USAAF Base Air Depot 1 at Burtonwood - was lost. Finally the aircraft, Serial No. 42-12920 began to descend and it appeared to one witness that the pilot was attempting a forced landing on the River Douglas itself just outside the Village of Croston. Indeed this may be possible as most of the fields in the locality were "planted" with anti-invasion poles at his time, making such a landing on farmland very hazardous. However at the last moment the wingtip struck a group of tall trees and the aircraft partly broke up, hitting the ground immediately with the centre section including the cockpit coming to rest over the river. It soon became obvious that lack of fuel was not the reason behind the crash as a fierce fire took hold at once and burning fuel was carried upstream by the incoming tide, making any approach to the wreck impossible. Once the fire had died down, the pilot's body was removed to the mortuary at Tarleton and the local Homeguard were detailed to guard the wreckage until the arrival of the American recovery team the next morning. The aircraft's remains were recovered with the assistance of a local farmer, one engine with a wing still attached lay near the trees where the initial impact occurred, but much had been destroyed by the fire. Today nothing remains at the scene and the riverbank where the center section lay has been built up as part of a flood prevention scheme. Some small parts were found in 1983 during an investigation by 2486 Squadron ATC from Lytham, though these are now believed to have been lost.

Finding eyewitnesses to the incident proved remarkably trouble free and in time we interviewed: an former Homeguard member who guarded the wreck, several locals who saw the plane immediately prior to the crash, one or two individuals who actually saw the crash and the farmer recruited by the authorities to remove the wreckage to the roadside for collection. However none could give a firm date for the incident and even the year was proving difficult to be sure of. Our lucky break came when aviation historian and writer David Smith was researching USAAF casualties and checking through a list which included details of servicemen based at Base Air Depot 1 (BAD1) at Burtonwood. Although the details are only brief, they answer the most important questions and finally give us a starting point for further research.

Acknowledgements:

K, Measham, Mr. F. Lee, David J. Smith, Russell Brown.

Email: lait@ukonline.co.uk

This page & all articles on this site Copyright © Nick Wotherspoon 1999