Beetley Wellington Memorial

On 9 November 1942, Wellington BJ764 from the French-Canadian 425 (Alouette) Squadron took off from RAF Dishforth at 17:33 for a bombing mission to Hamburg. Over mainland Europe, the aircraft was attacked by Luftwaffe night-fighter ace Oberleutnant Ludwig Becker near Raard, west of Dokkum in the Netherlands. Two crew members — Sgt Delorme and Sgt Pambrun — bailed out and became prisoners of war. The pilot, Flight Sergeant Foltz, a 26-year-old American from New York City serving with the RCAF, managed to regain control of the damaged aircraft and flew it back across the North Sea. However, approaching Norfolk the aircraft became uncontrollable and crashed near the village of Beetley, killing Foltz and the three remaining crew. A memorial at St Mary Magdalene's Church, Beetley, commemorates the Canadian aircrew who died.