1943 Gibraltar Liberator AL523 crash

On 4 July 1943, a Liberator II aircraft crashed off Gibraltar shortly after takeoff, killing all but one of the seventeen people on board. Among the victims were several senior Polish military leaders, including General Władysław Sikorski, the commander-in-chief of the Polish Army and prime minister of the Polish government-in-exile. The plane's pilot was the only survivor.

The crash was ruled to have been an accident, but the conclusion sparked controversy on Sikorski's death, with several alternative theories put forward. The crash marked a turning point for Polish influence on their Anglo-American allies in World War II.

Background

The relationship between the Soviet Union and Poland was tenuous at best during World War II for a variety of reasons, and became more so, after the 1940 Katyn massacre of over 20,000 Polish servicemen by the Soviets came to light. However, pragmatic General Władysław Sikorski was still open to some form of normalisation of Polish-Soviet relations, while General Władysław Anders was vehemently opposed. To boost morale, Sikorski began a tour of inspection of the Polish forces stationed in the Middle East in May 1943, tending to political affairs where necessary.

Accident

On 4 July 1943, while Sikorski was returning to London from an inspection of Polish forces deployed in the Middle East, his aircraft, a Royal Air Force (RAF) Consolidated Liberator, serial number AL523, crashed into the sea 16 seconds after taking off from Gibraltar Airport at 23:07 hours.

This Liberator C II was purchased and converted by the RAF for use as a transport and operated by No. 511 Squadron of RAF Transport Command on long-range flights between the UK and Gibraltar.

In 1972, the pilot, Flight Lieutenant Eduard Prchal, described the events: "I received the green light from the tower and we began our take-off run. I pulled the stick back and the aircraft started to climb. When I was at 150ft I pushed the controls of the aircraft forward to gain speed. Suddenly I discovered I was not able to pull the stick back. The steering mechanism was jammed or locked." The aircraft then lost height rapidly. Prchal closed the four throttles and warned the others through the intercom "Attention, crash". The aircraft crashed into the sea.

Sixteen people were killed: all eleven passengers and five of the six crew members. Only Prchal survived. The passengers included:

General Władysław Sikorski

Colonel Victor Cazalet MC – Conservative Party Member of Parliament for Chippenham, British liaison officer to the Polish forces

Jan Gralewski – an Armia Krajowa courier

Major General Tadeusz Klimecki – Polish Army Chief of General Staff

Zofia Leśniowska – Sikorski's daughter and secretary

Colonel Andrzej Marecki – Polish Army Chief of Operations

Brigadier John Percival Whiteley OBE – Conservative Party Member of Parliament for Buckingham