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Traveling to what was then Dutch Guiana were Judy Dally Woodard, whose father,
Cpt. B. Dally, was the pilot of the C-54. Betsy Cowan's grandfather was Maj. Eric Knight.
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| The ATC flew from Washington to Florida to Belem to Dakar |
Dave Edhard, Surinamese film maker, invited us to visit the site of
the crash of the C-54 which blew up on its way to North Africa, Jan. 15, 1943. On board were secret documents, a large sum
of American currency and 35 people. This was at the time the worst air disaster in North American aviation history. There
were no survivors.
In
1943 when the plane crashed, Judy was 5 and I was not yet born. We both felt we must travel to the place where
our loved ones had perished, giving their lives in service to their country. Over the years we had joked about making a trip
just like this. When the wonderfully exciting opportunity to travel to Suriname was presented to Judy and me, we immediately
said, "Yes!"
| Betsy (l) and Judy (r) on the Commewejne River |
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| Photo by D. Edhard |
Judy not only held on to this flag for
60 years, but packed it in her carry-on during the long flight from the US to Suriname. We unfurl it over a pile of wreckage still remaining at the crash site.
| Flag from Ceremony held in St. Louis, MO 1948 |
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| Photo by R. de Klein |
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I think back
to what happened, and what might have been...
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So beautiful... and so serene
today
Out of the Skies, into my Heart
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| Wing from tail #42-32939 |
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| Taken Jan. 16, 1943 by crash investigators. |
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A plaque honoring the 35 men who died was unveiled April 30, 2008
at Bakkie (Reynsdorp), the nearest village to the crash site. I am interviewed by the local media.
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