Crash of a B-24 Liberator in waters off Cape Sandwich, Hinchinbrook Island on 5 December 1944

CRASH OF A B-24 LIBERATOR
IN WATERS OFF CAPE SANDWICH AREA
IN RAMSAY BAY, HINCHINBROOK ISLAND, QLD
ON 5 DECEMBER 1944

B-24L Liberator #44-41628 was lost in an accident off Cape Sandwich on Hinchinbrook Island on 5 December 1944. It was a new aircraft that had been ferried from the United States in November 1944 and was released from Brisbane and being flown north as a replacement for a 5th Air Force B-24 Bomb Group.

Could this reference below supplied by Edward Rogers be linked to this aircraft wreckage near Cape Sandwich on Hinchinbrook Island?

Fifth Air Force
V Air Force Service Command
59th Service Group
November 1944

Headquarters
14th Emergency Rescue Boat Squadron
APO 72

Unit History, Month of December 1944

In addition to the other routine missions in the near vicinity, a rescue was made by the last of our boats enroute from Australia to New Guinea and The Philippines. The P-363, under Lt. Ogilvie and crew rescued the crew of a B-24 from Hinchinbrook Island near Townsville. A C-47 buzzed them and dropped a message streamer indicating the location. Within 1 hour and 40 minutes the six survivors were aboard and headed for Townsville and what medical aid that could not be administered by the Surgical Technician aboard.

Bob Livingstone believes that the aircraft wreck off Cape Sandwich, described below by two different divers, is the wreck of B-24L Liberator #44-41628.

NOTE:- The "Aircraft Crash Sites - Australia" reported that on an unknown date, the wreckage of a USAAF B-17 Flying Fortress was located in waters 1/2 mile off shore in the Cape Sandwich area on Hinchinbrook Island.

Was this really a B-17?

Or could it be the above B-24 Liberator that crashed in that area on 5 December 1944.

Or were there two aircraft crashes that occured in this same area? A B-17 and a B-24?

Brian Carr has been diving an aircraft wreck near Cape Sandwich on the north eastern end of Hinchinbrook Island for a few years. Brian has taken some video footage a while ago, and has placed it on YouTube. He believes that it is a B-24 Liberator wreck rather than a B-17. Brian shared the following information with me on 2 January 2008:-

"To give you a brief description of it, it’s lying on its back, one wheel is retracted up into the wing, and the other is half out with the tyre missing. The props are gone, the cockpit doesn’t really look like it did when it was flying, and maybe it’s a bit hard to picture it because it’s inverted? I did have a bit of a steer of it one dive tho, after finding the little batwing steering wheel – those guys must have had little hands!!"

"One of the impressing things on this plane is what looks to be the gun turret. I’m sure you can see it on the Youtube footage, my brother is floating next to it to get a good scale of the size of it. Am I correct in thinking that’s what it is? A spherical object (well covered with marine growth) maybe 5 – 6 foot across, with 2 long protruding gun barrel shape/sized objects coming out of it. It’s located on the underbelly, near the trailing edge of the wings on the fuselage."

Note:- Brian says that "one wheel is retracted up into the wing", which is typical of a B-24 Liberator. The wheels on a B-17 Flying Fortress retract up into the engine nacelle of the inboard engines rather than the wing.

Another diver, Michael Hughes, contacted me on 2 May 2002. Michael advised that he had recently been diving on an aircraft wreck in Ramsay Bay, on Hinchinbrook Island. Michael saw my earlier reference to a possible B-17 wreck off Cape Sandwich on Hinchinbrook Island. He believes the wreck is actually a B-24 and is the one he has been diving on.

He advised that the wreck is upside down in about 18 - 20 metres of water. While he was there he noticed that the landing gear is not consistent with that of a B-17 as it retracts sideways into the wing and not forward into the engine cowlings. He stated that it was a WWII aircraft as he had found the belly turret and the aircraft has 4 radial engines.

Note:- Michael repeats the belief that it is a B-24 Liberator wreck by repeating the same observation of how the wheels fold up into the wing rather than the engine nacelle, which is typical of a B-24 though he also states that he observed that he had "found the belly turret" which I don't believe the B-24 Liberator ever had.

The Cardwell Visitor Centre has a two page note written by a "Cocky" Watkins and a map which are background information for two aircraft Formation Lights which were recovered from an aircraft wreck off Hinchinbrook Island. "Cocky" describes the aircraft as a B-17 Flying Fortress. Both B-24s and B-17s had these types of Formation Lights installed on the end of their wings. The note mentions a Bernie Pollard who was a crew member of an RAAF Marine Crash Boat probably based in Townsville.

Via Mark Clayton