13/09/1915 Ooigem, BE2c shot down

[Guy Seyns]

Hello,

This week I've heard a rather uncommon story about a german postcard on which there was a crashed BE2c. On the 13th of september 1915 this plane crashed in Ooigem (Oyghem), the pilot survived and was taken POW. The passenger, a Belgian Intelligence Agent (a certain Vanderleene), didn't survive the crash (or was shot afterwards by german infantry, which was not so uncommon with "spies").

The plane was later transported to Izegem.

First : Can anyone tell me more about this fact ? Can this be confirmed in some kind of way ?

Second : How did intelligence agents communicate in 1915 ? Wireless was not so common as it was in WW II ?

Thanks in advance

Guy

[Dolphin]

Guy

Captain T W Mulcahy-Morgan of No 6 Sqn RFC was flying BE 2c 1680 on a Special Mission, ie delivering a spy, when he crashed into a tree near Oygem/Ooigem at 0515 on 13 September 1915. The landing ground chosen to drop off the agent was near a wood, so as to allow the agent to hide soon after delivery, but it appears to have been too small, hence the accident. German troops arrived soon after the aeroplane was disabled, but after friendly local civilians had removed incriminating papers and carrier pigeons.

Capt Mulcahy-Morgan and his passenger were taken Prisoner of War; the fate of the intending spy isn't mentioned in The War in the Air, but the pilot escaped to the United Kingdom on 9 April 1917.

Intelligence agents during the Great War used to send messages in a number of ways, including carrier pigeons, codes in letters, invisible ink, codes hidden in newspapers sent to neutral countries, using couriers who memorised messages, etc.

I hope this is useful

Gareth

[MattyBoy]

Hi,

I believe that spies would be taught how to swing the propellor of an aircraft for a few days before going out on a mission - so that the spy could get the pilot away again after the drop off.

[Guy Seyns]

Thanks a lot Gareth,

I think that the spy had been shot at the spot. I'm going to search in our archives monday evening. We do have a register of our three cemeteries, I'm almost certain that Mr. Vanderleene is burried at our churchyard in Ooigem.

What happened to the pilot ?

I've also heard that local civilians were taken prison and that one of them had been shot by german infantry. I try to get confirmation about that.

Guy

[Dolphin]

What happened to the pilot ?

Guy

Captain Thomas Westropp Mulcahy-Morgan RFC (formerly Royal Irish Fusiliers) was awarded the Military Cross on 7 August 1917. He received a permanent commission as a Major (Squadron Leader) in the Royal Air Force on 1 August 1919, and on 18 December 1919 he was awarded a bar to the MC for his action in escaping from captivity.

I hope this helps

Gareth

[Guy Seyns]

Brave one

Guy

[Starlight]

Hi Guy,

I've found some more details re the mission.

In the crash, one of the wings of the BE was torn off and Van de Leene broke both his legs and suffered minor internal injuries. He would have been killed except that he was cushioned by the basket of pigeons he was holding. The pilot and the agent were both in uniform when they crashed and changed into civilian clothing during the hour they had before a German patrol arrived. Both men were taken to hospital but I don't know any more about what happened to the spy.

Steve

[fetubi]

Steve,

Can you recall where you heard or read that 1) the two individuals were in uniform for the flight and 2) how they changed into civilian clothing after the crash please? I am writing an article on these events and had not come across these points, which could be important in understandsing what subsequently occured.

PS The spy did survive and eventually escaped from prison in 1918. A local gentleman who had helped conceal the spy parafenalia was eventually shot, however, after a note he had sent by pidgeon on behalf of the spy was intercepted (the pigeon was shot by German troops) and he became implicated.

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Trevor

Hi Guy,

I've found some more details re the mission.

In the crash, one of the wings of the BE was torn off and Van de Leene broke both his legs and suffered minor internal injuries. He would have been killed except that he was cushioned by the basket of pigeons he was holding. The pilot and the agent were both in uniform when they crashed and changed into civilian clothing during the hour they had before a German patrol arrived. Both men were taken to hospital but I don't know any more about what happened to the spy.

Steve

[Cnock]

Hello,

is this the pic?

Regards,

Cnock

[centurion]

Agents were dropped by parachute later in the war, a trapdoor being fitted in an HP bomber with a bolt that could be pulled remotely by the pilot (a bit like a gallows). The agent sat on the trap holding his chute in his lap and was launched into space at the appropriate time. One hopes that the agent's kit included a change of underwear.

[centurion]

In the crash, one of the wings of the BE was torn off and Van de Leene broke both his legs and suffered minor internal injuries. He would have been killed except that he was cushioned by the basket of pigeons he was holding. The pilot and the agent were both in uniform when they crashed and changed into civilian clothing during the hour they had before a German patrol arrived. Both men were taken to hospital

Why would they change OUT of uniform before the patrol arived when they were obviously going to be capured? Does not compute as this would be good way to get shot. Changing into uniform would make more sense.

[fetubi]

I completely agree, Centurion - wouldn't make sense to change out of uniform, and I am surprised to hear the spy was IN uniform at any time. Either situation would put either/both in very deep trouble.

I wondered where Steve had got those particular points from. MM was given no sort of court-marshal etc - just given some basic treatment in the local hospital and sent on his way to a succession of hospitals and POW camps, more or less still suffering from a broken jaw and 5 teeth lost (plus a broken arm). The spy was apparently sentenced and put in jail. It's odd that he was given a commital sentence yet the civilian who tried to help him was eventually shot. One's tempted to say that is war. His story is going to be told, though.

There's quite a bit of legal stuff on the rights of and possible consequences for captured pilots taken whilst bringing in spies (written immediately after the war in an effort to settle the law on the matter), not to mention a lot of discussion which clearly took place in the RFC at all levels - which indicates airmen were theoretically liable to be treated in the same way as the spy - potentially executed even - but in practice there is not a single instance of this happening. It wasn't going to stop spy dropping from happening, was it? And both sides were doing it of course. The instances of pilots even being put on trial are absolutely minimal - only case I know of was of an American pilot flying with the French who got tried and sentenced to prison. There's a lot written by the French about spy dropping but relatively little in English. Some of the french aces were doing it, according to their books. The Germans did try to court-marshal MM later - after his first attempt to escape. He was basically contemptuous.

Does anyone know more about what happened to the spy?

Yep, that is the machine in the photo btw.

Trevor

[Cnock]

The first person at the crash site was Doctor Hollebeke.(arrested afterwards, because he looked after the wounded pilot)

VANDE LEENE gave him his documens, to be destroyed, so that he would not be considered as a spy.

VA DE LEENE was taken to the O.L. Vrouw hospital at Kortrijk

Cnock

[centurion]

Trevor - interesting. The idea that one could try a uniformed officer for espionage if he was captured in connection with an ununiformed agent seems to have been started by the French just over a hundred years earlier in 1812 when they captured Colquhoun Grant one of Welligton's intelligence officers when he was visiting agents that he ran in Spain. Although Colquhoun Grant was in full uniform when captured the French sent him in a coach under armed escort to Paris to stand trial for espionage. It was regarded as a foregone conclusion that he would be shot but he escaped from the coach and escort en route. (If this seems familiar to anyone C.S. Forrester lifted whole chunks of the story for his book Flying Colours - Colquhoun Grant after escaping boarded a regular stage coach for Paris, still wearing his British uniform, telling the driver and other passengers that he was an American officer. Once in Paris he stayed in a safe house but visited various military establishments, still in uniform, in the guise of an American officer gathering information about his country's new allies. Only when the authorities became suspicious did he escape by boat down the Seine pretending to be on a fishing trip.)

The concept of guilt by association continued and I believe the Germans were also using the precedent to accuse sailors landing agents by boat of espionage.

[Cnock]

It looks like they both kept their uniforms on, only got rid of documents and the pigeon basket.

VAN DE LEENE was an ex police officer of Kortrijk, if he had been considered as a spy he would have been shot, and not transported to Gemany.

There even exists a pic of him when he was treated at the civil hospital in Kortrijk.

Later the Germans searched houses near the crash site because women had told that letters had been delivered by the pilot or the passenger.

Regards,

Cnock

[fetubi]

Cnock,

Thanks for posting these details. I was familiar with them, but would still like to know if Van der Leene was indeed in some sort of uniform (would not have been entitled to be in RFC uniform - would have been excuse enough to give him a very rough time.). I predict he was in civvies (for a fast get away - you would not ASSUME you were going to be caught and needed to be in some sort of military uniform).

What puzzles me is that although both pilot and spy were injured in the crash and both were helped/removed form the BE2c, and both taken to hospital for care, surely there would be immediate and circumstantial complicity/connection between them by the authorities. In what circumstances was van der Leene tried and sentenced to jail (and not, as you say, shot) if he was so obviously a spy arriving by air with a British pilot? I do agree the actual "proof" seems to have been effectively removed from the scene before the Germans arrived - ie if he was tried as a spy at the time he was perhaps tried "without proof, other than circumstantial." Or was he re-tried when the note turned up in Hollebeke's hand writing? MM never saw or heard of him again.

Or, as you seem to imply(correct me if I'm wrong), was his presence in the hospital that morning with two broken legs somehow disassociated from the plane crash - but instead linked to/influenced by his ex-police status? Something doesn't quite add up.

Picky, I know, but I would like to know the proper sequence of events for all the protagonists. I'd value any thoughts or further facts you may have on this.

Regards, Trevor

[Cnock]

Trevor,

Indeed picky,

I noted that VANDE LEENE wore civil cloathing under his uniform, so I only can add that I suppose that VANDE LEENE wore his Belgian army uniform.

The Onze Lieve Vrouwe Hospitaal at Kortrijk, was a civilian hospital, but taken over by the German Army , many wounded POW of different nationalities were treated there.

If VANDE LEENE was considered as a spy, and not as a soldier, there is little chance he would get there for treatment.

There is a great possibility that he was never tried as a spy, and went to Germany simply as a pow Belgian soldier (where he escaped)

Regards,

Cnock

[Cnock]

...and if VANDE LEENE was considered as a spy, he would not have been laying in a ward with other wounded, but been kept in solitary confinement.

Regards,

Cnock