MUSTANG F6 C OF CITERNE

The search for and discovery of the F6 C reconnaissance Mustang, (P 51 C)

Summary of the excavation report by Pierre Ben and Jean Pierre Ducellier

Saturday 11th September 2010.

This morning we left at 7.50 am for Citerne in search of a P51 "Mustang" reconnaissance plane of the 9th Air Force of the USA which had crashed on the territory of this commune on Wednesday 7 June 1944 - the day after the D-Day landings. The crash took place 2 kilometres west/north-west of Citerne, 700 metres south-west of the mill at Frucourt. A lovely brick mill, very well restored. The usual small team was : Pierre Ben; Jean-Luc Brard; Jacky Faudé; Ghislain Lobel; Albert Berthet; Alain Boutté; Nelly, his companion; Amédée de Francqueville; the mayor of Citerne; the mayor of Bailleul; a few onlookers; Claude Bué, the former witness thanks to whom this plane could be identified... Mr Bué had been contacted by Alain Boutté.

On Wednesday 7 June 1944 this P51 F6C "Mustang" of Squadron 15 of the 67th Tactical Reconnaissance Group of the 9th Air Force of the USA - photographic version P 51 C - was returning from a visual reconnaissance mission over the Lille-Cambrai region when it was shot down by small-calibre anti-aircraft fire and crashed on the territory of the commune of Citerne.

The original American reports, however, did not know where the plane fell, the pilot's wingman having placed his leader's fall in the vicinity of Fauquembergues in the Pas-de-Calais. No German report, to our knowledge... no American report on the crash site... but a few years after the war, Claude Bué, now present, had once witnessed the crash of this plane. Because of the German military, he was not able to approach the crash site at that time, but a few years later, while ploughing his field with his horses, he found the pilot's identity plate on the crash site

 - Captain Mauritz F. Johnson.

Claude Bué then passed on his find to the gendarmerie who handed it over to the Americans and the pilot is now buried in the large American cemetery at Colleville in Calvados.

The story was thus closed and on Saturday 11 September 2010, Pierre Ben's small team was on site to try to find the remains of this American plane. The young, friendly and very precise crane operator handled the crawler crane with great dexterity. After a superficial stripping of the ground, many pieces of corroded aluminium were first found.

The search continued and a nearly complete landing gear leg was found in good condition. Then some cockpit parts were found, not always easily identifiable with the dirt, as well as the completely blown Merlin Packard engine, which had apparently burned up in the dirt. The propeller hub and a blade were also found, as well as several armour plates. Then in perfect chronology the other landing gear leg was found, also in good condition with the tyre, then part of the leading edge of a wing. While sorting out the soil on the surface as the team members usually do, 4 belt loops from the harness were found.

During the clean-up, the team also found the two focal lengths of the two Kodak K 24 cameras, certainly the Fairchild intervalometer, a device installed in the cockpit and which allowed the speed of the photos to be adjusted according to the altitude of the aircraft. Adjustment made by the pilot. The plate of the BelI & Howell mitralleuse will also be found as well as the two radiators of oil and water /Glycol, a part of the dashboard with still some legible inscriptions, in particular "Gun sight" (collimator).

Still to be found and for some parts restored:

- the throttle and mixture handle perfectly identifiable and particular to the Mustang...

- various rubber protections with inscriptions coming from the tanks' envelope...

- the armour plate of the headrest in green colour,

- an English commando dagger model Wilkinson F&S. (probably won at poker!)

- the air compressor

- the hub with a blade

- a fuel gauge.

- an oxygen bottle

- the landing gear jacks

- generator

- carburettor parts,

- the film from the Fairchild K 17, etc...etc...

THE EXCAVATION 

VINTAGE DOCUMENTS 

The mission, June 7th 1944

Let us recall that from Tuesday June 6, 1944, day of the Landing, all the allied fighters and light bombers of the RAF, the 8th Air Force and the 9th Air Force of the USA were covered with invasion stripes (3 white and two black).

Few information will filter out of this reconnaissance mission over the Lille - Cambrai area, of these 2 P51 "Mustang" F6 C of the Squadron 15 of this 67th TRS of the 9th Air Force of the USA which will end tragically by the death of the leader, Captain Mauritz F. Johnson. on Wednesday June 7th 1944, The mission proceeded a priori without incidents (uneventful) until the batteries of small artillery (Light Flak) enter in action at the passage of these planes which were returning to England.

However, the two American reconnaissance aircraft were evidently not on the return route as briefed. The 2nd Lt Ted E. Reger, however, seems to think that they were still there. Indeed, this pilot locates the flak fire in the area of Fauquembergues, South-West of St-Omer and North-East of Hesdin while the F6 -C3 of Captain Mauritz will crash at Citerne South of AbbeviIle. The crash was certainly very fast since the planes were only flying at 750 meters altitude (confirmed by the debris of the plane found at a medium depth), confirmed also by the fact that the plane lost sight of its leader, probably very quickly shot down by the first flak.

It seems to us very possible that the 2nd Lt Reger, the wingman, did not realise that he was flying much further south as he was following his leader and could have thought -even if several orbits had been made south of Cambrai- that his leader had resumed the planned route.

Let us read the official report made on the return of this reconnaissance mission by 2"° Lt Ted E. Reger, wingman to Captain Mauritz F. Johnson: 15th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron, AAR APO 595, US Army 9 June 1944.

"On 7 June 1944 at about 1615 hours Captain Mauritz F Johnson and I were returning from a visual reconnaissance mission (Mission number 67/231/31, Field Order No 185) over enemy occupied territory.

We were flying at about 750 metres; at minimum cruising speed when I saw intense Light Flak fire with a number of tracer shells coming towards us as we flew over the area of Fauquembergues, about 15 miles South West of St-Omer and 15 miles North of Hesdin. Immediately on seeing this flak I called to Captain Johnson to separate us from each other, which we did, Captain Johnson to separate us from each other, which we did, Captain Johnson then moving off to the right.

On resuming my normal route I could not see Captain Johnson's plane at any point.

I tried to make radio contact with him about 8 times. Without success. I made several orbits over the area and tried again to make contact with him but again without success. I also could not see his plane either in the air or on the ground and did not see his parachute. Finally I resolved to go back to England.

                                                                                                                                                                2nd Lt Ted Reger.

Official documents 2nd Lt Ted Reger's account

The characteristics of the P51 F6C

The characteristics of the P51 F6C were identical to those of the Mustang B and C and the Mustang III.

91 P51 F6C Mustangs were produced. 71 from the P51 B production in Inglewood, California and 20 from the P51 C Mustang production in Dallas, Texas.

Packard Rolls-Royce V 1650-7 engine with 12 cylinders and about 1550 hp.

.

Wingspan: 11.28 metres.

Length: 9.83 metres.

Height: 3.71 metres.

Empty weight : 3 200 kgs.

Maximum take-off weight: 6,300 kgs.

Maximum speed: 700 km/h.

Cruising speed approx. 580 km/h

Range 1,600 kilometres with additional fuel tanks.

Ceiling: 12,750 metres.

Armament: 4 x 12.7 mm machine guns.

The P51 F6C "Mustang" # 42-103230 of the 9th US Air Force, flown by Captain Mauritz F. Johnson, shot down at Citerne on 7 June 1944, had the markings 5 M on the fuselage, identifying Squadron 15 of the 67th TRG of the 9th Air Force. It was equipped with a Malcolm Hood canopy and its colour was "Neutral Grey".