Sgt Frank Samuel Martin RAFVR 1916 - 1944

 

Sgt Frank Samuel Martin was born in Kent in 1916 and lived there with 4 siblings and parents in 1921. His parents and one sister were recorded as living at the same address in 1939.  For reasons that are not clear he developed an association with Denham in Buckinghamshire where he was buried in St Mary’s Churchyard in 1944. He joined the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve and underwent training as a bomb aimer in the second World War.

Like the rest of the crew who were also in aircrew training, he took off in Wellington bomber LN293 on 25 August 1944 from RAF Chipping Warden in Northamptonshire.  The mission for this aircraft was to participate in a diversionary bombing raid as the allies progressed from the D-Day Normandy landings to the east and south.  After collecting at a point in the North Sea off the Netherlands, the mission turned for this aircraft to a night navigation training exercise to Luton, Southampton and Bristol before returning to base, at all times maintaining radio silence except when crossing the coast back to England, which occurred at 20 minutes past midnight.

At some point close to Hanham, the aircraft became uncontrollable and the captain gave the order for the crew to bail out.  No mayday radio transmission was received by ground stations.  Sgt Martin bailed out, but his parachute became fouled on the aircraft and he landed in a tree in Hencliff Wood without it.  His body was found by Hanham resident Malcolm Williams, then a schoolboy. The remains of his parachute were recovered some 1½ miles northeast from where is body was found.  As such Sgt Martin was the nearest operational fatality to Hanham in World War 2.

Another crew member bailed out of the stricken aircraft, and he landed fatally in Keynsham with his parachute unopened.  The remaining four crew members died when the aircraft crashed in a near vertical dive on Uplands Farm land, south of Keynsham.

The RAF Investigation into the crash was unable to determine a cause as the aircraft was so badly damaged on impact at the crash and subsequent fire.

Sgt Martin and the crew are believed to have been undertaking aircrew training in New Brunswick, Canada prior to this mission.  His wife and infant daughter had arrived in Liverpool on a ship from New York on the day that his aircraft took off on this fatal mission.  It is believed he has grandchildren living today in Canada.

The history of this memorial goes back to 2010 when the Bristol Evening Post reported the efforts taken by Malcolm Williams, John Cummins and Roy Crew to establish a lasting memorial to Sgt Martin.

 At the going down of the sun and in the morning, we will remember them.

Note by author:

The memorial can be found on the footpath (South Gloucestershire Council reference PHA/2/30) leading from Common Road into Hencliff Wood by Harvey’s Shopfitters (which donated the cross) towards the River Avon about 180 yards on the left walking down.

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 John Antill

© Hanham Local History Society