Sandhurst School bombed; 611 Sqn Pilot Interviews

At 12.30 pm, on Wednesday 20th January 1943, Sandhurst School was bombed. According to eye witnesses the pilot waved to the children in the playground as he flew at rooftop height over the school. Half the building collapsed into aheap of rubble killing 38 children and six teachers. More than 60 children and staff were injured. For two days people picked through the rubble digging out the casualties.

Eye Witness accounts:

"65 years ago last week my old primary school, Sandhurst School in Catford, was shockingly bombed by a German fighter plane, eyewitnesses including my grandmother used to say that the plane was flying so low that you could see the evil in the pilot's eyes.

When I was there in the 1970's the air-raid sirens were still situated around the corner from the school. On January 20th, 1943 just after lunch had began the then familair sound of sirens sounded. Some kids made their way to the shelter, a bricked up classroom on the 2nd floor, others ignored it and continued chatting with friends and eating their sandwiches. These were young school children, blissfully unaware that a fellow human being would want them dead.

The pilot flew his FW190 Fighter-Bomber down low over Downham Way and the nearby playing fields around midday aimlessly firing bullets at gawping and ducking people below. The pilot then turned his premeditated intentions to his major target, the school situated between Minard and Ardgowan Roads.

Flying at roof level the German pilot flew down the top of Ardgowan Road where my Grandmother, pregnant with my Mum, was like her neighbours drawn to the window of their house to investigate the sound of roaring engines. My late Nan told us the story many times of the determined look in the face of a killer. Other eye witnesses said that the Nazi pilot actually waved to children in the playground before he dropped a 1,100lb on their young innocent heads.

Half of the school building collapsed into a heap of rubble killing 38 children and six teachers, most not even having the decency of dying instantly, just suffocating under a collapsed building. More than 60 children and staff were injured, many being plucked from the debris by hundreds of rescuers. For two days people picked through the devastation digging out the casualties. The dead were buried in a mass grave at the nearby Hither Green Cemetery."

"Although only a small child at the time in 1943, one of my vivid memories of the war was a day in January when my mother and I heard the sound of a low aircraft. We went out into the road and saw an aircraft flying at roof level. We could see into the cockpit and even after all these years I can see the pilot with his helmet and goggles. He then went in a straight line to Sandhurst School where he dropped his bomb killing many children and teachers, many of whom were in the dining hall when the bomb exploded.
The is a memorial garden in the school grounds with the names of those who lost their lives inscribed on individual paving stones"

"Remember, remember — yes, I remember how it happened. That day, January 20th, 1943, though now far away, will never be forgotten. To me, as child of twelve, it was the most terrible day of my life. Yet I think I learned a lot on that day about how brave and self-sacrificing people can be... the whirr and screech of a diving aeroplane right above us. My friend, Edna, and myself clung together, our hearts thumping very rapidly. "It's alright," we tried to console ourselves. "It's only one of our fighters." Then two girls rushed into the shelter — "The plane," they said, "it's got black crosses on it!" We all looked at each other, the silence being shattered by a tremendous thud which shook everything and everyone in that shelter."

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• Sandhurst
• Road
• School
• Catford
• 20th
• January
• 1943
• Wg
• Cdr
• Milne
• Sqn
• Ldr
• Hugo
• Armstrong
• 611
• Squadron
• S/Lt
• Gouby

[pacificspitfires]

As you can tell by the accent, Squadron Leader Hugo Armstrong was an Australian serving in the RAF. He served with distinction receiving the DFC and later added a bar ('bar' indicates he was awarded the DFC a second time). At the time of his death he was 26 years old.

[jhaskoll]

My mother was a 9 year old little girl who was playing with her friends in the school playground. She was found 2 days later by her father wandering outside the local hospital. She did not speak a word for months. She could not say what had happened to her.

No counseling back then just pain and trauma. She lost her childhood and every friend she knew.

Please remember this was a human tragedy that destroyed children. A nationalistic approach to this incident is inane, insensitive and ignorant.

[Pitcairn2]

@nuf294w

Why was your post flagged as Spam? A perfectly reasonable comment. Someone does not like the truth.

[Pitcairn2]

@antibulletdodger101

The Swedes, some of the most arrogant complacent smug folk I have ever had the misfortune to know and work with. Not having had a direct war in over a hundred years they think they know everything. You do not have the empathy with people in the UK who lived through those times and when london, and many other cities in the UK were bombed. Harris took the war to those Nazi bastards and WE WERE GLAD OF IT.

[Pitcairn2]

@hindazz829 WTF has that got to do with bombing a school? ' 'Watch out Hun or I will use my pommy accent viciously on you'

Dick.

[hindazz829]

fucking hate pommy accents like these. Makes them sound all high class and shit, when really they're not.

[traxel14]

@bodybager I find it great to read such sentances, because it is a fact that all nations, all religions and all people have done great deeds of sorrow throughout time. I´m sorry about the fact, that polititians lead "normal" people to war and bring so much tragedy to those, who just want to live in peace,

[Missrockprincess981]

This is my primary skool it still exist most of the buliding is the same except the bit that got bombed you can still see were girls and boys went in to have lesson we were told that when the bombs hit our skool that the bomber waved at them and then booom

[terryjohn]

@mrsheyjode sorry' but war has had very bad ways to kill.

[terryjohn]

@bodybager yes- remember hit his he-the pilot. who gets called a Nazi.-when facts are not shown.

[terryjohn]

@TheFirecogicuk what does it say- this school was hit by a EVIL-Nazi pilot.

[terryjohn]

@mrsheyjode what by H Schumann the Nazi pilot.lol sorry about that. but there his 2 sides to a coin.