Sonar ship to hunt WW2 bomber off north-west coast

On 30/12/2008
In Airplane Stories
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By Andrew Bushe

A hi-tech sonar ship will undertake a seabed survey next year for a World War Two bomber that sank after ditching in the Atlantic Ocean north-west of Donegal.

The four-engined Halifax - number LW170 - was forced to ditch in August 1945 after it sprang a fuel leak while on patrol from a base in Scotland.

The aircraft remained afloat for seven hours before eventually sinking an estimated 1.6km to the bottom of the ocean. The crew took to a life raft and were rescued by a passing freighter.

The Canadian sonar ship will search the seabed for the plane as part of efforts to recover the iconic aircraft.

"This is the big break and opportunity we were looking for these past three years," said Karl Kjarsgaard, an Ottawa-based airline pilot who is manager of the 'Halifax 57 Rescue' project.