Beck Row Visit
I was fortunate to get permission to visit the site of the February 1942 Beck Row, Suffolk crash. Badly damaged over the Frisian island of Sylt the Stirling crashed close to the unlit RAF Mildenhall, unaware of their position they even deployed the dinghy. The aircraft hit a wall close to Beck Row Farm, demolished it and came to a stop. 2nd Lieutenant Louis Bingham Murray lost his life in the crash.
Beck Row Farm and the rear wall which was rebuilt not long after Drummonds Short Stirling smashed into it.
A few hundred yards to the south the outer fences of RAF Mildenhall can be clearly seen. Of course on the night it would have been under blackout and Drummond and his crew were not aware of their exact position anyway, so could not have known a runway was so close. Neither could the airfield have known of the approaching aircraft.
Nick Clements kindly took us to the crash site. His father owned the farm back in 1942 and back in the 1960's he remembered finding some 'bakelite switchgear' which he sadly threw away. He told us how the crew were taken to the farmhouse where they were given tea and cakes until they could be collected and returned to Wyton.
A remarkable find by my wife Michele, a piece of perspex which came from the front of Drummonds Stirling following its collision with the wall.m A 'proper' search of the area is planned for 2019 in the hope other artifacts can be found.