New BBC film to investigate cause of Donegal WW2 plane crash
A new BBC film is set to investigate the crash of an RAF bomber in Donegal during World War 2.
23-year-old Leonard Ashby Court was killed when the RAF Wellington bomber he was flying, crashed and burst into flames at the foot of Mount Errigal on February 28th, 1943. All six of the crew members onboard perished in the crash.
Those other crew members included Belfast men John Steen Campbell and James Gilmore, and Geoffrey Scott-Farthing, John D’Arcy Wal and Ronald William Gutteridge from England.
The footprint of that crash is such that some bits of debris can still be seen in the bogland where the plane went down.
Tubaiste sa Phortach has been made by Clean Slate Television for BBC Gaeilge, with support from the Northern Ireland Screen’s Irish Language Broadcast Fund.
Journalist Kevin Magee will investigate the possible causes of the crash in the film, as well as meeting with the now 84-year-old son of pilot Leonard Ashby Court.
He will also meet with members of the local Irish-speaking community near the crash site, who have created a memorial to remember the fallen RAF crewmen.
The film contains rare footage showing inside the remains of the RAF base at Limavady, where the crew was based in 1943.
Kevin also travels to the Brooklands Museum in Weybridge, Surrey, where one of the few examples of the aircraft still exists, to discover more about the Wellington bomber.
Tubaiste sa Phortach will broadcast on BBC Two Northern Ireland and BBC iPlayer on Sunday the 29th March at 10pm, and is part of BBC Gaeilge’s Seachtain na Gaeilge season of programming.
New BBC film to investigate cause of Donegal WW2 plane crash was last modified: March 29th, 2026 by Staff Writer
Comments (0)