Braid Fell

As noted, Alex’s Hampden crashed on Braid Fell, a ‘fell’ being a type of large hill or ‘highland’ in Scotland. The remote area was developed as a bombing and gunnery range in World War II for use by RAF West Freugh and perhaps other nearby bases. According to an article by historian Nina Burls of the Royal Air Force Historical Society, in Journal 45 (2009, Windrush Group, ISSN 1361 4231) titled 'RAF BOMBS AND BOMBING 1939-1945'; "The creation of new range facilities, such as those at Braid Fell, which were ready for use in 1941, illustrates how the techniques of bomb development were refined during WWII, since this range permitted testing to be carried out under operational conditions for the first time."

Burls goes on to state; 

"Testing of a new bomb was usually a five-stage process:

1. Inert bombs dropped from high-flying aircraft to check their flight and the appropriate settings for the bomb-sight;

2. Live bombs dropped to test fusing and detonation;

3. Inert bombs with live fuses were flung from aircraft against concrete walls;

4. ‘Rough usage’ tests, ie ground handling using standard RAF trolleys and winches to ensure that the bomb was safe and generally ‘airman proof’;

5. Finally, inert, but fused, bomb dropped from a high-flying aircraft on a representative target at Braid Fell."

There is an un-named paved single-track road off the A77 at Innermessan that mostly cuts through a shallow depression in a northeasterly direction through the center of the range and up to the Penwhirn Reservoir. The reservoir was established post-war in the 1950’s to supply drinking water to Stranraer and the surrounding area. I’m sure most people pass the road without giving it a second thought. My assumption is that the road was dirt or gravel during the war, and was paved later, perhaps during the development of the reservoir.

Braid Fell rises from sea level to a height of 771 feet (235m), the summit (center of Blue Circle in map below) being just a third of a mile from the south side of the road near a concrete hut. Much of the fell is heavy grassland and is described in several sources as ‘moorland’. It appears more like a grassy plateau from the road with slight rises and dips, but you can see the bomb craters are all water-filled.

At first, I was under the impression that the fell was just a big round hill and that the crash occurred on the southern slope, which made sense with the aircraft hitting a momentary air pocket. But the crash occurred on the southeast side of the road, 50 feet higher than the elevation of the road itself at approximately 660 feet (201m). It lies in a broad flat saddle (perhaps part of the Balker Moor) between Braid Fell’s peak and that of Cairnscarrow at 751 feet (229m) some 2 miles (3.2km) to the southeast. The plateau doesn’t start to drop off significantly until after Cairnscarrow. In the topographical map below, you can see how relatively flat the terrain is, especially south of the road (Yellow double-dashed line), compared to the west side as it rises from the shores of Loch Ryan. Each pale brown line represents a change of 10 feet (3m) in elevation.

Remarkably, in April of 2009 and June of 2021 a couple intrepid Google Street View cars ventured up the road and today you can take a virtual drive up the fell past the landmarks I mention below and get a 360° view. Many of the images I’ve include here were captured from these Google surveys.

There are just a few remnants of the former range that have survived to this day. The first mile and a half of the road meanders steeply up the fell past a hand-full of farms and homes right about where the treeline, known as the ‘Craigcaffie Belt’ stops at an elevation of 492 feet (150m).

As soon as you round the last corner coming out of the tree-line you first notice a large building in the distance. It appears to be on the right side of the road, but as the road meanders up the steady grade you discover the building, and a concrete wall behind it, is actually on the left side at an elevation of 610 feet (186m). The 2-story building (44 feet wide by 60 feet long) was reportedly built post-war to shelter the MoD bomb disposal unit and their equipment.

The steel reinforced wall (approximately 24 feet high, by 120 feet wide) is the main remnant from the war still standing. At first, I thought it was perhaps used for gunnery practice due to the lack of any bomb craters in the immediate vicinity visible from satellite images. However, per Burls article noted above, Step 3 in the development process was "Inert bombs with live fuses were flung from aircraft against concrete walls".

From the Google Street View images, most of the damage appears to be on the west side with the concrete eroded away by the impacts which has exposed the re-bar reinforcing grid, now well oxidized. The east side appears to be more intact and lichen covered, however there are two significant holes plus another partial along the top edge. There also appears to be a couple major fissures lower down. It is hard to image that these were created by kinetic impacts of inert bombs, and surmise these may be exit wounds from cannon and perhaps rocket fire. 

Less obvious is a large concrete arrow on the left of the roadside about 250 feet (76m) from the wall noting the direction of attack for the approaching pilots. There were likely other concrete arrows on the range to direct the pilots, but none of the others are still visible via satellite and are probably overgrown.

Alex’s plane crashed over a mile east of the wall according to MoD coordinates. I’m withholding the exact coordinates as I don’t want scavengers disrupting the area. It would be interesting to have the site properly surveyed one day, and I’ve informed the local historical society.

It’s not clear what, if anything, may still remain at the wreck site. The aircraft was described as completely burnt out and as it hit the grassy plain in a vertical dive, I believe Alex and his crew would have died instantly. 

Very little likely survived beyond the engines, outer wings and perhaps some of the twin tail boom. The Hampden was a fairly large aircraft, however, with a 69 foot, 2 inch (21.98m) wingspan and a length of 53 feet 7 inches (16.33m).

Based on the elevation and terrain, it’s unlikely the Wigtown RAF Mountain Rescue Team helped retrieve the human remains, but this warrants further investigation. Medical personnel from West Freugh likely carried the remains to a waiting ambulance on the road with a hand-litter or perhaps with the help of a jeep depending on how boggy the terrain was around the crash site.

I reached out to Alan Clark who runs the peakdistrictaircrashes.co.uk website and has done a terrific job over the years documenting and cataloging these lost crash sites (see Stoneykirk page) to see if he was aware of Hampden P1216. He replied he is, but does not know when or if he will ever be able to inspect the site. As it lies within the Braid Fell range, it adds some extra complexity. I reached out to a couple of drone operators in the area as well to see if a more detailed aerial survey (which would be a bit safer) could be done, but unfortunately, I have not heard back as of the time of this publication.

About 3/4's of a mile beyond the concrete wall is a brick and concrete hut (25 x 17 Feet) on the left side of the road. It is assumed this was an observation post of sorts to observe the strikes on the dummy factory further up the road. The land slopes off and there are concrete pillars that support the north side. Nearby is another concrete arrow, which can be seen in the 2009 image, but not very well in the 2021 image, pointing in the direction of the dummy factory. You can also see the entrance has partially collapsed in the intervening years.

Across the road from the hut, about 325 feet away, on the top of a rise is what appears to be a small semi-circular concrete structure (4 x 8 Feet), similar to a Quonset hut, open on both ends. The fact that is concrete and lichen covered leads me to believe it was from this era as well. Based on its orientation, perhaps a bomb resistant one-person observation spot that worked with personnel on the hut and had a better vantage point from the rise as both are near the peak of Braid Fell and therefore a highpoint along the road before it begins to slope down towards the reservoir.

About half a mile beyond the concrete hut is the largest grouping of bomb craters visible on satellite on both sides of the road. The left side of the road is believed to have been the location of a large dummy factory they built to practice on.

According to A.T. Murchie's book 'The RAF In Galloway 1910-2000' (2000, GC Book Publishers Ltd, ISBN 10: 1872350186 / ISBN 13: 9781872350189): "A factory building believed to be similar to many in the Ruhr was erected. It consisted of three adjacent blocks of one, two and three storeys, each block 80 feet by 200 feet, with a concrete apron 120 feet by 200 feet. A steel girder framework was completed by reinforced concrete and brickwork; one block had a flat roof, the others ridged roofs using slates, tiles and corrugated sheeting." See the image above in the photo carousel which shows various roof types on the one-story section, the flat roof in the two story middle section, and a variety of roof types on the three-story section with the concrete apron beyond that.  According to geograph.org.uk it was "completed in August of 1941. Trials were suspended in April 1942 to enable repairs to the heavily damaged target."

This is at an elevation of 656 feet (200m). Reportedly, it would periodically be re-built, but nothing remains except the bomb craters, not even a foundation or footings. This area has a low fence surrounding it, likely to keep any livestock out and perhaps as a deterrent to any inquisitive hikers or cyclists. There don’t appear to be any signs warning of the potential explosive danger, only warning of the soft ground and deep ‘pools’ (that bear a striking resemblance to bomb craters!).

According to secretscotland.org; “Assumed to be connected with the bombing range, two concentric circles made up of granite chips and with an overall diameter of 34 metres are now lost to sight and reported to lie buried beneath a layer of peat. The location given lies approximately 400 metres west of the dummy factory, and has been subject to peat cutting in later years, since the buried gravel circles were reported in 1986.”

Interestingly, about a mile southeast of the dummy factory there is another cluster of several bomb craters at an elevation of 715 feet (218m). It is the second largest cluster of craters visible on satellite images, and seems too far away and too concentrated to be factory bombing errors, and was probably a secondary target area of some sort on the range. Most sources, however, suggest all the bombing practice happened on the north side of the road where the dummy factory was located, although we can also see a significant number of craters on the south side in that immediate vicinity as well. As the reservoir had not yet been developed it is also feasible that the road ended more or less in the center of the dummy factory, which would explain the craters on both sides.

Besides knowing the crash occurred while they were attempting to conduct low level bombing trials with incendiary devices, we don't know which step in the development process described by historian Burl they were in, or which of the three main target areas they were navigating to. Each one has its pros and cons, but none is the clear answer:

1. Concrete Wall - This target makes sense from the standpoint that runs were known to be made at low level and it was about a mile away as estimated. However, the location of the crash in relation to the wall and the fact that Alex was in the process of making a 90° turn to port (left) means there is not a scenario where a 90° turn traveling on any possible course (N, E, S or W) would have put them in the proper position to final approach on the west side of the wall and still crash where they did. Inert devices were also used against the wall from the information we have, not live incendiaries.

2. Dummy Factory - This target makes sense for the turn if they were approaching from the southwest. The distance was a little further, however. Also, runs on the factory were reportedly conducted at high altitude, not low level as described. but that may have just been for high explosives.

3. Alternate Site - This target also makes sense for the turn, if also approaching from the southwest but is half the estimated distance at only 1/2 mile. Unfortunately, there is no documentation that states what altitude this alternate site was bombed from. It may have simply been a substitute bombing practice site in open moorland to be used during periods when the dummy factory was being repaired or rebuilt.

Part of this is colored by the report that the fire at the crash site was so intense they allowed it to burn overnight.  This leads me to believe live incendiaries were being carried which would have intensified the fire. I'm not sure the fuel load on the Hampden (likely not full for what was to be a 30-minute flight), would have resulted in such a fire.

My working theory is that the dummy factory was the target and that they were trialing live "J" bombs at low level to see how low they could drop from (they were parachute retarded) and still have them penetrate a roof and activate the flame. In March of 2025 I identified some files stored at the National Archives in Kew specific to Bomber Command Trials at Braid Fell between August 1943 and May1944, and I'm hoping a research contact can access them later in 2025.

The surrounding fells to the north and east have been developed into large windfarms (Glenapp, Kilgallioch, Balmurrie, Artfield and Glenchamber). While we were there in September of 2023 the Braid Fell access road at Innermessan was closed off for local traffic only and for construction equipment to build new Arecleoch Windfarm extensions known as ‘Stranoch 1’ and ‘Stranoch 2’.

When I first learned of this, I feared they were going to extend onto the former range and may compromise the crash site. However, the closest, ‘Stranoch 1’ is still several miles east of the crash site past the Penwhirn Reservoir and the main Water of Luce River.

You can jump back to the RAF West Freugh section of Alex's biography here.