Alberta museum recovering, rebuilding WW2 Halifax Bomber found in Baltic Sea
Posted Aug 19, 2021 7:36 am.
Last Updated Aug 19, 2021 8:12 am.
NANTON, Alta. – An extremely rare plane lost in World War II has been found in the Baltic Sea and a museum south of Calgary is working on retrieving and rebuilding it.
Nanton Bomber Command Museum Curator Karl Kjaarsgard says 70 per cent of Canadians flying in the second world war were flying the four-engine Halifax Bombers.
An extremely rare plane lost in World War 2 has been found in the Baltic Sea and a museum south of Calgary is working on retrieving and rebuilding it. (CREDIT: Bomber Command Museum of Canada)
Kjaarsgard recently got a call about one that was found near Sweden and jetted off to begin the recovery process.
He says they know exactly how this plane went down.
“They lost two engines flying to Germany on a bombing mission and they knew they couldn’t get back to England. So, they turned north and went to Sweden which was neutral,” Kjaarsgard explained.
“All seven of the guys bailed out and they all survived.”
Where the plane landed is mostly freshwater, meaning the parts are in great condition with very little corrosion.
“We are greatly heartened and pleased by the condition of the aluminum and steel components we recovered and uncovered with minimal corrosion on skin, ribs, and machined parts.”
An extremely rare plane lost in World War 2 has been found in the Baltic Sea and a museum south of Calgary is working on retrieving and rebuilding it. (CREDIT: Bomber Command Museum of Canada)
The museum has been trying to rebuild a Halifax Bomber for years and salvaging some of the parts from the found plane in Sweden will be a big help.
“And you could use these ribs and fittings to restore an airplane. They need to be cleaned up, they need to be polished, maybe repaired a little bit, but it’s amazing,” said Kjaarsgard.
He has just returned from the first expedition to retrieve the parts and is fundraising to go back.
