For my story about @CWGC headstone this week, I will take you to the Devizes Road Cemetery in #Salisbury. Sadly this week the story relates to a group of headstones belonging to a Czech Air Crew who flew with No. 311 Squadron, RAF. Their plane, a Wellington Bomber 1c, came...1/10

down near Mere, in #Wiltshire on 2nd July 1941. No 311 (Czechoslovak) Squadron RAF was formed from the growing numbers of refugee airmen that were turning up in Britain having been evacuated from France. Three bomber squadrons were formed; 304 & 305 Squadrons with... 2/10

Polish personnel & 311 Squadron with Czechoslovak personnel. From 16 September 1940 the squadron was based at RAF East Wretham in Norfolk as part of Bomber Command's No. 3 Group, On the night of the 1st/2nd of July the squadron sent 8 aircraft to Cherbourg. The 'Prinz Eugen' 3/10

was in port. She had arrived after leaving the ill-fated ‘Bismark’, which had been sunk on the 27th of May. The aircraft began to get airborne at 2145 hours & the attack was made in the company of Wellingtons of No.9 Squadron from Honington. In spite of heavy ground fire the 4/10

attack was pressed home & at least one direct hit was scored. A bomb crashed through the deck of the ‘Prinz’ & destroyed the radio room. The attack killed 60 men & wounded more than 40 others. The loss of the control center also made the main guns useless and repairs lasted 5/10

until the end of 1941. All the aircraft had returned by 0435 with one exception; Wellington R1516 KX-U with six crew on board, had suffered the failure of both its identification, friend or foe system, (designed to make home stations recognise incoming friendly aircraft) 6/10

and its radio, so when attempts to contact it failed on its return to English skies, the plane was considered hostile and shot down by a RAF night-fighter (a Bristol Beaufighter T4638) of 604 Squadron based at Middle Wallop. The plane crashed at Lower Park Farm near Mere 7/10

in Wiltshire at 0146 on the morning of 2nd July 1941. Pilot Sgt Oldřich Helma, 2nd Pilot Sgt Antonín Plocek, Navigator Pilot Officer Richard Hapala, Wireless Op Sgt Adolf Dolejš & Air-Gunners Sgt Jaroslav Petrucha & Sgt Jaroslav Lančík were all killed. Oldřich Helma, 8/10

Antonín Plocek, Richard Hapala, Adolf Dolejš and Jaroslav Petrucha are buried at Salisbury (Devizes Road) Cemetery; Jaroslav Lančík’s ashes were returned to family in Czechoslovakia. Oldřich Helma and Jaroslav Petrucha share a headstone. An utter tragedy which must 9/10

have played heavily on the mind of the Beaufighter’s pilot, believed to be Group Captain Charles Henry Appleton, C.B.E., D.S.O., D.F.C. who himself was shot down over France during Operation Overlord on 12th August 1944. Brave men all, who deserve to be remembered. 10/10