Norway: rare wreck of a British aircraft found

In the Norwegian fjord of Trondheimfjorden was found a rare wreck of a British plane from the Second World War. Interestingly, the find was made by pure chance. It all happened during an underwater exploration course organised for students of one of the universities.

-- Advertisement --

No one expected a routine training exercise to find a real gem – a British Handley Page Halifax aircraft. This four-engine heavy bomber was one of the primary bombers of the Royal Air Force – RAF. In addition, due to its payload, the unit often took part in supply drops for resistance movements in German-occupied countries.

“We have found the wreckage of a British Halifax aircraft from the Second World War. The bomber most likely took part in an attack on the German ship ‘Tirpitz’ in 1942, during which it was shot down,” – said Professor Martin Ludvigsen from the Marine Technology Centre

According to the information provided, the depth at which the wreck rests is a real challenge. The well-preserved Halifax lies at 180m. The fuselage is somewhat shattered, but the structure itself remains almost as it was 70 years ago! Both the wings, which span 30m, and the engines are in place.

“Together with six students we took part in an underwater engineering class. The students were given the task of planning and conducting a search operation. The moment they managed to hit the aircraft, cheers erupted. This is extremely fortunate, as during similar searches, only 1 in 10 attempts are successful,” added Prof. Ludvigsen

At the moment, preparations are being made to produce as accurate documentation of the site as possible. From the available data on the participation of Halifaxes in the attack on the battleship “Tirpitz”, it appears that several of them were actually shot down. In the near future it may be possible to write the final chapter in the story of one of the downed machines and its 7-man crew.

Source: nrk.no, wikipedia