Did you know about the U.S. plane that went down near the Channel Islands?
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The propellers of the C-47 at the Jersey War Tunnels (Photo: Ian Ronayne)
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One of our recent short articles (Howard Davis Park) was about the graves of American servicemen in Jersey, one of the Channel Islands (The Channel Islands in World War II), the only part of the British Isles to fall under German occupation in World War II. Today, we’ll talk about one particular group of Americans who died just off the islands when their plane was shot down, and came to be buried there. They have since been all either repatriated to America, or moved to another military cemetery in Europe, but the crosses still stand over the empty graves in Howard Davis Park in Jersey to pay tribute to the fallen. This article was written with the help of local Jersey historian Ian Ronayne.
A C-47 Skytrain (The C-47) took off from near Paris in the late hours of October 30, 1944, carrying 12 men – some of them crew, the others returning to Cherbourg from leave. (The liberation of Cherbourg) The plane’s pilot was Lieutenant Bob Blackler.
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Lieutenant Bob Blackler, pilot of the ill-fated plane
(Photo: jerseybunkertours.com)
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Visibility was poor due to overcast skies, and the inexperienced copilot got lost while trying to navigate. The plane’s radio system was on the fritz, so they couldn’t call the destination airfield for help. The C-47 overshot Cherbourg and the entire Cotentin Peninsula, flying out to sea towards the still German-held Channel Islands.
Once the plane reached the island of Alderney, it came under attack from German anti-aircraft guns and was hit in the tail. Believing the attack to be friendly fire and seeing land, Blackler turned on the plane’s navigation lights and started descending, and internationally recognized sign of distress that was generally respected even in wartime.
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Aerial photo of the German flak unit most likely responsible for downing the plane (Photo: jerseybunkertours.com)
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One man who did not respect the distress signal was the German commander of a flak unit in Jersey. He had his guns open up on the descending plane and hit the left propeller, forcing it to make an emergency landing some 200 yards away from the shore. The officer was later court-martialed and punished for firing on a plane in trouble that might even have been German.
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Remains of the wing section of the downed plane (Photo: Sue Daly)
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The water landing was relatively smooth, but the C-47 started sinking into the gelid winter waters. Blackler climbed out on a wing to inflate the plane’s rubber dinghy, but slipped as he was being tossed about by the waves, and dropped the dinghy, which sank unopened. Having no other choice, all men but one jumped in the water and swam for the shore they could see in the distance. One man stayed behind and was last seen clinging to the tail as it sank.
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Bouley Bay off Jersey, the area where the plane sank (Photo: Visit Jersey)
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Some men succumbed to the cold, but seven or eight reached the shore. They were dismayed to find that the shoreland was all tall cliffs, too steep and the waves too strong to climb up. One by one, they went down, either freezing to death or dashed against the rocks as they tried to get to safety. Blackler stayed some 30 yards back and waited for rescue there. He was eventually fished out by German soldiers who threw him a rope. Even though he only suffered light injuries, hypothermic shock forced him to stay in a local hospital for a week.
Six of the drowned men were washed ashore in the next two days and were buried in Howard Davis Park with the Germans giving them full military honors. One Colonel John Reybold, the senior officer of a group of 21 U.S. prisoners of war on the island, was also allowed to attend as an American representative.
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Colonel John Reybold, who represented America at the funeral
(Photo: jerseybunkertours.com)
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Join us on our London to Channel Islands Tour to visit the cemetery and learn more about the German occupation of the archipelago.
With thanks to Ian Ronayne.
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Anne Frank wrote the last entry of her diary on August 1, 1944. Remembering this grievous moment of history we are offering 15% off for 2025, 25% off for 2026, and 35% off for 2027, if you pay in full until August 1, 2025. The tour price is refundable up until 90 days before departure. This offer is valid only for new bookings and cannot be combined with other promotions.
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