International Team of Explorers to Search for Lost WWII Bombers

October 16, 2018- A team of explorers, historians, and archaeologists representing four countries will search for lost Allied WWII bombers off the coast of Brindisi, Italy for two weeks beginning on Saturday, November 3rd, 2018. Led by Peter Wytykowski, of the Shipwreck Expeditions Association, the group has been given unprecedented access by the Italian government and other entities to search previously restricted areas off the coast of Italy for the remains of the bombers which were lost during the last months of WWII. “This is a chance to close a final chapter of World War II history for the militaries of allied countries and the families of over a dozen airmen who gave their lives to fight tyranny”, said Wytykowski.

The expedition is the culmination of over two years of archival research by more than a dozen researchers in the US, Poland, and the UK, leading to the conclusion that several lost bombers from Allied actions in SE Europe remain undiscovered on the floor of the Adriatic Sea. A Halifax MKII from the 1586th Special Duties Squadron, a Liberator MKVI from the 301st Special Duties Squadron, and a B-24J from the 885th Bomb Squadron, are all targets for the team. The planes went down after conducting bombing runs and clandestine missions late in the war.

The Special Duties squadrons were part of a secret air service created to provide air transport to support the resistance movement in Axis controlled territories. The service helped develop and support the resistance by bringing in agents, wireless operators and supplies. The Polish 301st and 1586th were commanded by the Polish forces operating out of the United Kingdom during WWII. The 885th Bomb Squadron was operated by the United States Army Airforce. All of these squadrons operated out of the airfield in Brindisi, Italy during the last months of the war. The team will spend two weeks using high tech equipment including side scan sonar and ROVs to search the area for the missing planes. If located, efforts will be made to identify the planes using photographic and video evidence and notify next of kin of the over one dozen lost airmen whose bodies were never recovered.

The Shipwrecks Expedition Association is a multi-national group of divers, archaeologists, historians, and explorers who have conducted expeditions worldwide since 2011. Several of these expeditions were honored with the flag of the Explorers Club, to which several members belong.
More information at: http://wyprawywrakowe.pl/en/

Chris Kraska
2950 Cannon Road
Twinsburg, Ohio 44087

This release was published on openPR.