wrote on November 30, 2010
Royal Air force Bomber Command Losses 1943 Volume 4,
June 21-22 1943 408 Squadron Operation Krefeld
Halifax II, BB375 EQ-T Pilot Sergeant CC Reichert
RCAF Pilot Officer J E Monahan, and RCAF Sergeants C C Richert,
G M Mclean, JP Dockerill and W Searle died and are commemorated on the Runnymede Memorial. P/O J C Russell and Sgt G I Pridham were Prisoners of War and Pridham was held at Heydekrug and repatriated May 28, 1944.
Take off 23:35 Leeming. Shot down by a night-fighter crashing at 02:24 into the Lop near Lopik 18 km SSW of Utrecht. While trying to assist his skipper a cannon shell exploded and Sergeant Pridham lost a leg . Realizing he was unable to maintain control, Sergeant Reichert ordered the badly wounded air gunner to bail out.
Since 1945, parts of this Halifax have been recovered from the river and now form a memorial to this RCAF crew. At it’s unveiling the citizens of Lopik invited Sgt Pridham to attend as their honoured guest
Excellent example of the Netherlands appreciation