Memorial to tragic pilots killed when 'submarine killer' plunged into hill

A FLY-over has been staged above the Berwyn mountains to remember three airmen killed in a little-known wartime crash.

- By ANDREW FORGRAVE

A brass plaque set in an 8ft-tall monolith was also unveiled to commemorate the Second World War tragedy.

The three young crewmen lost their lives when their plane ran into a heavy snowstorm near Llangynog, north Powys, on February 3, 1944.

The aircraft, a US-made Grumman Avenger used by the Royal Navy, plunged into the hillside of Trum-Y-Fawnog, losing part of a wing on the way down.

Grumman Avengers were torpedo bombers made by General Motors with folding wings that became one of the war's most effective submarine killers. The Berwyn victim was armed with a torpedo at the time.