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Archive Report: Allied Forces

Compiled from official National Archive and Service sources, contemporary press reports, personal logbooks, diaries and correspondence, reference books, other sources, and interviews.
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421 Sqn (RCAF)
19.04.1945 421 (Red Indian) Squadron, RCAF, Spitfire XVI SM242, Fg Off. Alexander G. Scott

Operation: Armed reconnaissance.

Date: 19th April 1945 (Thursday)

Unit No: 421 (Red Indian) Squadron, RCAF, 127 Wing, 2nd Tactical Air Force

Type: Spitfire XVI

Serial No: SM242

Code: AU:?

Location: In the vicinity of Schwarzenbek, Germany

Base: B114 airfield, Diepholz, Germany

Pilot: Fg Off. Alexander Graham Scott J42479 RCAF Age 19. Murdered


Fg Off. Scott had a shared claim, with Fg Off. Marsden, for a damaged Fw190:

“I was flying: as Cradle Violet 4, when KENWAY vectored our section onto 4 FW.190’s at approximately 10 ml., N.E. of RETHEM, I sighted one at six o’clock - followed my number one (Violet 3) around onto his tail and my number one dived, down onto the FW.190 with myself to port and slightly astern. I saw strikes on the FW.190 from my number one. The FW.190 broke off to starboard, my number one to port, thus leaving me dead astern of the FW.190; I stayed on his tail, slowly closing - my height below 1,000 ft., the FW.190 weaving slowly, when at approx. 400 yds, I opened fire and observed strikes on under side of fuselage and black smoke pouring out. Violent evasive action took place and the FW.190 pulled away from me. I did not follow it as it was getting dark and my fuel was low".


REASON FOR LOSS:

At 13:30 hrs eight squadron aircraft took off the B114 airfield at Diepholz in Germany to carry out an armed reconnaissance of the Hagenow-Lübeck-Hamburg-Neumünster area.

Fg Off. J.V. Marsden who was flying as #3 on “B” flight reported the following:

“Fg Off. Zoball was leading "B" Flight with Fg Off. Scott as his #2 on this Armed Recce to the Hagenow-Lubeck area. Fg Off. Zoball decided to strafe the marshalling yard at Sterley (SSE of the Küchensee) and attacked it roughly out of the sun with Fg Off. Scott following him down about 600-900 yards behind. There was quite a bit of light flak (40 mm) and Fg Of. Zobell's fire hit some goods wagons probably loaded with ammunition because there was a big explosion and lots of smoke. I saw Fg Off. Zobell and then Fg Off. Scott pull up just clearing the smoke of the explosion, however Fg Off. Scott's plane was trailing white smoke (it turned out to be glycol). About a minute passed during which I lost sight of Fg Off. Scott due to cloud and then he called on the R/T saying that he was hit in the radiators and his glycol temperature was rising. He also said he was west of Sterley, losing height and would have to crash land, being at 2,000 feet and crossing the Elbe-Trave Canal. That was all he said so we approximate his landing position as in the vicinity of Schwarzenbek.”

Note: Schwarzenbek is some 25 km (15½ mls) SW of Sterley

An investigation into the circumstances leading to the death of Fg Off. Scott determined that he crash landed his Spitfire beside the village of Woltersdorf on the 19th April 1945, in a field about 200-250 yards behind the house of one Theodor Mügge..

Note: Woltersdorf is some 12½ km (7¼ mls) NE of Schwarzenbek.

A number of Displaced Person’s (DP’s), both Polish and French were working nearby. At least three of them rushed to the aircraft and undid the pilot’s harness. Apparently the pilot’s legs were caught in the wreckage and his removal was not possible until he was freed by a number of German soldiers, who had run to the scene from the village.

At the same time of the pilot’s release it was claimed that Mügge, an Erich Beginnen and a cadet believed to by a member in the SS arrived at the scene, whereupon the German soldiers and the DP labourers were sent away. Beginnen apparently served with the 395th Grenadier Regiment and was variously described as either a company commander, a political officer or an officer in the SS.

The cadet was later identified as an Otto Beck or Bek purported to be an SS Platoon Commander in No. 4 Marschregiment which was temporarily stationed in Woltersdorf.

Fg Off. Scott was not seriously injured at this time and talked to the DP’s while being released from the aircraft. He was then dragged by the feet over a hedged embankment to the edge of a wood, by the aforementioned Germans.

Shortly thereafter a shot was heard in the woods and some time later two German soldiers were seen to go into the woods with shovels. Under the supervision of Beginnen the pilot was buried in a shallow grave about 25 yards inside the woods.

The pathologist’s report on the exhumation of the body verifies the fact that the airman had been shot.

The No. 1 Canadian War Crimes Investigation Unit had initially investigated this case which included the interrogation of Mügge who, however, insists that he was not present when the pilot was shot. The DPs who were interrogated were certain of his presence at the scene of the crash, though, they could not swear as to his presence at the shooting.

Beginnen was interrogated by a number of investigators and his story remained consistent in that he knew nothing about the alleged crime.

The only real clue was given by Mügge in his statement in which he claimed to have spoken to two staff officers, an Oberrat (the title of an administrative position in the Ministry of Education) Leffler and Oberleutnant (1st Lt) Beer who were billeted in his house at the time of the incident. Mügge had a conversation, which he remembered quite clearly, with these two officers on the day of the crash in which they told him that the pilot of the plane had been shot.

Beginnen claimed in his statement that he had seen these two officers with Fg Off. Scott before he had arrived at the wreck of the burning aircraft. In the opinion of a later investigator Leffler and Beer where the only ones who knew exactly what happened. Over a period of 2½ years these two witnesses had not been traced.

On the 12th December 1947 the Field Investigation Unit confirmed that there was little likelihood of bringing the case to a successful conclusion or even less of obtaining sufficient evidence to incriminate Beginnen. The main accused in the case, however was not Beginnen, who appeared to play a secondary role, but Otto Beck or Bek. Despite an 18 month search it was deemed that there was no hope of tracing him and accordingly the case was closed.

Burial details:

Fg Off. Scott was initially buried in an isolated grave at Woltersdorf, Germany and reinterred on the 11th June 1947 at the Hamburg (Ohlsdorf) Cemetery, Germany.

Above: Fg Off. Scott, left from his service file, right his grave marker. Credit: The War Graves Photographic project

Fg Off. Alexander Graham Scott. Hamburg (Ohlsdorf) Cemetery, Plot 10A Row O Grave 9. Inscription reads: "OUR HEARTS EVER CHERISH HIM IN FOND REMEMBRANCE AND ARE HUMBLE WITHIN US". Born 21st April 1925 in Iroquois Falls, Cochrane, Ontario. Son of Arthur Alexander and Clarissa Donalda (née Hemming) Scott of Westmount, Quebec, Canada.

Researched by Ralph Snape and Traugott Vitz for Aircrew Remembered and dedicated to the relatives of this crew with additional thanks to Traugott for his work on the ‘VitzArchive’. Update to include investigation into the circumstances of Fg Off. Scott’s death (Feb 2024).

Other sources listed below:

RS & TV 04.02.2024 - Addition of case investigation

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Acknowledgements
Sources used by us in compiling Archive Reports include: Bill Chorley - 'Bomber Command Losses Vols. 1-9, plus ongoing revisions', Dr. Theo E.W. Boiten and Mr. Roderick J. Mackenzie - 'Nightfighter War Diaries Vols. 1 and 2', Martin Middlebrook and Chris Everitt - 'Bomber Command War Diaries', Commonwealth War Graves Commission, Tom Kracker - Kracker Luftwaffe Archives, Michel Beckers, Major Fred Paradie (RCAF) and MWO François Dutil (RCAF) - Paradie Archive (on this site), Jean Schadskaje, Major Jack O'Connor USAF (Retd.), Robert Gretzyngier, Wojtek Matusiak, Waldemar Wójcik and Józef Zieliński - 'Ku Czci Połeglyçh Lotnikow 1939-1945', Archiwum - Polish Air Force Archive (on this site), Anna Krzystek, Tadeusz Krzystek - 'Polskie Siły Powietrzne w Wielkiej Brytanii', Franek Grabowski, Norman L.R. Franks 'Fighter Command Losses', Stan D. Bishop, John A. Hey MBE, Gerrie Franken and Maco Cillessen - Losses of the US 8th and 9th Air Forces, Vols 1-6, Dr. Theo E.W. Boiton - Nachtjagd Combat Archives, Vols 1-13. Aircrew Remembered Databases and our own archives. We are grateful for the support and encouragement of CWGC, UK Imperial War Museum, Australian War Memorial, Australian National Archives, New Zealand National Archives, UK National Archives and Fold3 and countless dedicated friends and researchers across the world.
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