Saturday Morning, October 5
On a sunny but cool Saturday morning, we started out, from the Esso station again and headed back to the landing site for a more formal celebration of 75th anniversary of the events of 1944. In addition to the 50+ Canadian descendants, children, grand-children, and great grandchildren, of the crew who had come to Norway for this event, Canada was represented by Canada’s Defence Attaché to Norway, Colonel Jeff Drummond, and the Commanding Officer of 407 Squadron, Lieutenant-Colonel Patrick Castonguay and his squadron Chief, Warrant Officer Serge Harvey.
Several hundred Norwegians, including many descendants of the original “helpers”, were there to mark the occasion and to share their own memories. A special flag party was provided by Bjorn West. A small musical group, bigger than a band but smaller than an orchestra, Søre Neset Musikklag, added a sense of ceremony to the occasion which was held to acknowledge the courage of a small group of the Norwegian resistance in defying the commands of an occupying enemy and in enabling 6 young to return to the UK to continue their war against Nazi Germany.
Several hundred Norwegians, including many descendants of the original “helpers”, were there to mark the occasion and to share their own memories. A special flag party was provided by Bjorn West. A small musical group, bigger than a band but smaller than an orchestra, Søre Neset Musikklag, added a sense of ceremony to the occasion which was held to acknowledge the courage of a small group of the Norwegian resistance in defying the commands of an occupying enemy and in enabling 6 young to return to the UK to continue their war against Nazi Germany.
Ms. Lisbeth Lunde Axelsen, Kultursjef at Os commune, acted as the master of ceremonies for the occasion, introducing the speakers.
Mr. Terje Søviknes, Mayor of Os, was the first to speak, and spoke of the courage of all involved, expressing his gratitude that the memory of this crash and the rescue was being kept alive.
One of the organizers, Gaute Dyrdal, retold for the benefit of the Norwegian participants the events before Wellington and its crew made an emergency landing on the ground we were all standing on, and how the crew was kept out of the hands of the occupying German forces until they could be sent back to Britain.
To see Gaute's complete story, as presented on Saturday evening, please go here.
To see Gaute's complete story, as presented on Saturday evening, please go here.
Captain (N) Asmund Andersen, Commandant Bergenhus Fortress, represented the Norwegian Navy, and the ship Hitra, sister ship of the Vigra. He told the assembled guests the story of the Shetland Bus, and its remarkable history from the fall of Norway to May 8, 1945, when the German armed forces n Norway surrendered. During that time the Shetland bus operated a small fleet of fishing boats until they were given three submarine chasers by the US Navy - the Hitra, the Hessa and the Vigra. On May 9, 1945, the Hitra and the Vigra entered the harbour of Longøy near Bergen in a free Norway
Captain Andersen had been in the Shetlands shortly before the ceremony in Os, to honour those who had served on the Shetland bus.
Captain Andersen had been in the Shetlands shortly before the ceremony in Os, to honour those who had served on the Shetland bus.
Colonel Jeff Drummond, Canadian Defence Attache to Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark delivered a message from Canada's Minister of Veterans' Affairs, expressing Canada’s gratitude to those who had risked so much to assist the crew during their time in Norway 75 years earlier. He also expressed his gratitude to the families of both the Canadian aircrew and their Norwegian rescuers for preserving the story so it could be told to future generations.
Lt. Colonel Patrick Castonguay, Commanding Office, RCAF 407 Long Range Patrol Squadron, accompanied by his Squadron Chief, Chief Warrant Officer Serge Harvey, spoke on behalf of the RCAF and 407 Squadron, once again expressing the thanks of 407 Squadron to those who had sheltered and transported the squadron crew so many years ago. After his remarks, Lt Col Castonguay and Chief Harvey presented a plaque from the squadron to commemorate the event and the gratitude of the squadron to the community.
Rick Firestone, RCAF (Ret), son of Crew member E. Harvey Firestone, spoke on behalf of the families of the crew members, expressing the gratitude that we all felt for the “courageous, selfless and determined Norwegian men and women of 1944 that saved our fathers from a terrible fate”. Reflecting the emotions that we all felt, he expressed our deep gratitude for the efforts of the people of Os for keeping those memories alive in the community.
Here is another report, with all of the speeches, some a little abbreviated, and a few scenes of people arriving at the crash site.
Representatives of the original six Canadian crew members presented flowers that were laid at the memorial stones at the site.
Just as we thought the ceremony was over, Lt Col Castonguay made a special announcement, that approval had been given for a 407 Squadron Aurora, a successor to the Wellingtons flown in 1944, was about to fly over the site. The aircraft had been in Scotland for other activities and through the efforts of Col Drummond on behalf of the Canadian government, and negotiations and coordination with the Norwegian government and the Bergen area Air Traffic Control, the Aurora’s flight had been authorized. After flying from the east up the fjord and banking to the left, the Aurora flew over the area above the path that NB811 had flown to the landing site 75 years earlier. It flew a large loop out over the fjord to make a second pass over the landing site in the same direction as before, then, before it headed back to Scotland, turned around to do a third in the reverse direction coming back over the group at the landing site and saluting them with a waggle of its wings.
