On May 8, 1944, a bomber crashed near Darp. This afternoon, Mayor Jouke Spoelstra of Westerveld unveiled an information panel in memory of the crew members who died.
The panel tells the story of a crashed American ‘bomber fighter’, the ten crew members of which were all around twenty years old. “The plane was hit by German anti-aircraft artillery, landed on the ground and exploded. As a result, everyone died,” says Klaas Molenkamp, chairman of the Havelte Historical Association.
The plane was returning from a mission to drop bombs on Berlin. “Then it returned and hit Darp here above,” said Molenkamp. “And today we thought about that.”
During the ceremony, wreaths were laid and the song ‘The last post’ was played on the trumpet. The project, known as Lost Wings, was initiated by the Drenthe Air War Research Foundation. The historical association of Molenkamp and those from Diever, Dwingeloo and Vledder also contributed to the arrival of the information panel in Darp.
The Drenthe Air War Research Foundation has now created about a hundred information panels, including a sign in Westerveld. “That had some snags, but eventually the first panels were installed,” says Yannick Wethly of the foundation.
“The municipality of Westerveld has approximately fifteen crashes, and we hope to eventually be able to jointly provide other locations with a ‘Lost Wings’ information panel,” Wethly continues. He feels connected to the men who fell during the war. “They were often my age when they died, so an information panel like this is the least we can do.”
Mayor Spoelstra is also very happy with the information panel, especially because this year May 4 and 5 are all about ‘learning to understand history’. What strikes him is that the panel also contains photos of the killed soldiers. “That panel really gives that history its own face,” says Spoelstra. “It is a very nice initiative.”
