Memorial Avro Lancaster Mk1 ED333 Urk

Unveiled in April 2025, this monument commemorates the crew of the British Lancaster bomber that crashed in this area on 17 December 1942. The monument was designed by Fokke de Vries from Urk and made from Corten steel by a local company (VCU Urk). It consists of a scroll, which refers to the Book of Revelation in the Bible, bearing the names of the seven crew members and the emblem of the 97th Squadron with the text “Achieve your aim”. A model of the Lancaster “floats” above the scroll. The monument, a symbol of courage and sacrifice, is attractively illuminated in the evening, and streets in the new residential area will be named after the crew members.

The Crash:

The Lancaster Mk1 with registration ED333 OF-B of 97 Squadron RAF took off from RAF Woodhall Spa at 17:22 on 17 December 1942 for a mission to Neustadtam Rübenberge in Germany. It was the aircraft's first and last operational flight. The target that night was the Hanover-Bremen railway line. Over the Netherlands, the aircraft was attacked by a German night fighter flown by Hauptmann Helmut Lang, from Fliegerhorst Leeuwarden. The Lancaster crashed in flames in plot E14 of the then newly reclaimed Noordoostpolder, near what is now Karel Doormanweg 56 in Tollebeek. This is approximately 1,400 metres from this location as the crow flies.

All seven crew members were killed. Because parts of the aircraft were still in the water, not all of the remains were recovered immediately. Four of the men were buried in Amsterdam, while the three bodies that were recovered later in 1946 and in 1948/1949 were buried in a communal grave in Amersfoort.


The crew consisted of:
Flight Officer Samuel Lorne McBurney Pilot, 21 years old, RCAF (buried in Amersfoort)
Warrant Officer II Leonard Everett Thorneycroft Observer, 29 years old, RCAF (buried in Amsterdam)
Sergeant William Henry Paul Kelleher Radio operator/air gunner, 26 years old, RAF (buried in Amsterdam)
Sergeant James Izatt Flight engineer, 22 years old, RAF (buried in Amsterdam)
Flight Sergeant Stanley Finace Mattoon Bombardier, 20 years old, RCAF (buried in Amersfoort)
Sergeant Glynn Bull Air Gunner, 19 years old, RAF (buried in Amsterdam)
Warrant Officer II Chester Charles Trudell Air Gunner, 21 years old, RCAF (buried in Amersfoort)

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Source

• Text: TracesOfWar & Lub van den Berg
• Photos: Lub van den Berg