On a cloudy day in November 1948, ‘Overexposed’, a Boeing RB-29A Superfortress, was making a short flight to Burtonwood near Warrington to deliver mail and the payroll for American service personnel. Because of the low cloud, the flight had to be flown on instruments. While passing over Shelf Moor (Bleaklow), the crew estimated the time it would take them to fly over the hill. Unfortunately they started to descend too soon and crashed into the hillside, killing all 13 crew.
A very atmospheric place with Bleaklow living up to its name, it’s quite incredible how much stuff is still there considering it was 63 years ago. After wandering across the moors looking for it, I’ll admit a shiver went up my spine when we glimpsed the twisted, glinting metal strewn across the hillside. Despite time, the elements and people taking bits there is still plenty there, and if you know your planes, much that can still be identified. I didn’t click straight away that the lumps under my feet were lumps of melted aluminium from the heat of the fire. It’s quite a weird, solitary, bleak, beautiful place, and a memorial to the men that survived the war, only to die on a flight of less than an hour.
wing
wing
front wheel gantry
engines
carabeener, for scale
Plane gubbins: “The B-29 was one of the largest aircraft to see service during World War II. As one of the most advanced bombers of its time, featuring innovations such as a pressurized cabin, a central fire-control system, and remote-controlled machine gun turrets; it was designed as a high-altitude daytime bomber, but flew more low-altitude nighttime incendiary bombing missions. It was used as the primary aircraft in the U.S. firebombing campaign against Japan in the final months of World War II, and B-29s carried the atomic bombs that destroyed Hiroshima, Nagasaki and the test bombs at the Bikini Atoll. The B-29 remained in service long after the war ended, a few being employed as flying television transmitters for Stratovision.”
http://www.neolithicsea.co.uk/b29sup...ess/index.html
I assume it is called ‘overexposed’ because it belonged to the 16th Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron, 91st Reconnaissance Group, 311th Air Division, Strategic Air Command, USAF. I've learnt more about planes in the past couple of weeks than in my whole life!