Three bodies recovered from crashed British bomber

Three bodies have been recovered from the wreckage of a Royal Air Force bomber that crashed at Glabbeek in Flemish Brabant in March of 1945. The plane – a Lancaster NN775 – came down on marshy ground, and the wreck sunk over the years to several metres deep. The plane was returning from a mission to bomb a German oil refinery at Gelsenkirchen.

The first body to be recovered was tail gunner Sergeant Christopher Hogg, then aged 20, from Birmingham. Two more bodies were found the following day, believed to be pilot Holman Kerr from Northern Ireland and 18-year-old Flight Sergeant Allan Olsen, an Australian.

The dig was visited by the British and Australian ambassadors, as well as relatives of one of the three men. The bodies of another two crew members were retrieved shortly after the crash.

The coffins were draped with the national flag of the soldier concerned, with a brief military salute by a guard of honour of the British Commonwealth. Glabbeek mayor Peter Reekmans, who initiated the recovery project, said the remains would be handed over to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.

The three dead are likely to join their colleagues in a collective grave at the military cemetery in Leuven (pictured).

Photo courtesy Commonwealth War Graves Commission