WWII Death: John Charles Butler of Owny Villa, Aberporth

[warresearcher]

In Wales, a 13 year old boy, John Charles Butler of Owny Villa, Aberporth, Cardiganshire was electrocuted in 1941 when a secret balloon borne device came down trailling 2000 feet of wire over high voltage lines. He grabbed it and died, a soldier tried to help and was burnt, How can I research the story of this?
Any help appreciated, would local papers have reported the death, there must have been an inquest?

Thanks

[kyt]

Wire trailing balloons were part of Operation Outward. However, they did not become operational until 1942. But trials did occur earlier and he may have been an accidental death from that.

K

[warresearcher]

This was not Operation Outward but a trial of the Free Balloon prototypes. Unlike Outward, which delivered either a trailing cable or a series of incendiaries. it consisited of a large balloon carrying an explosive charge and 2000 feet of wire atached to a parachute. In this case it was the wire that caused the problem. The Free Baloon system and wire was designed to reach over 10,000 feet and hopefully to be hit by an enemy aircraft and then as the parachute was drawn under the wing and behind the aircraft the bomb was drawn onto the wing where on contact it exploded. Many of these Free Balloon devices were faulty and on reaching a certain height released the spool of cable with its packed parachute, however this one probably because of leaks in it hydrogen gas did not remain aloft and came down. They landed in populated areas, and since they were "SECRET", there were very few people in the know as to what they were and how dangerous they were, killing military and civilians alike. Once armed and on the ground, Bomb Disposal found them extremely dificult to disarm as they would blow up at the slightest touch. Several BD lost their lives or were injured from these devices. This one episode was particularly sad as the child was probably only doing what many kids did, collecting souveniers that fell from the skies, despite official orders not to do that. It must have been in a local paper. What would have been the most likely paper to have run the story in those days?

[Hanes Aberporth]

Hello,
I came across your enquiry by accident and hope I can answer some of your questions regarding John Butler, Owny Villa.  I am a resident of Aberoprth since 1925 and have an interest in local history.
John Butler's father was transferred from an MOD Establishment in Kent (Fort Halstead?) to the PDE (Projectile Development Establishment) at Aberporth. The PDE later became an outstation of the Royal Aircraft Establishment Farnborough. He brought his wife, son and daughter Joan with him an rented Owny Villa in the village of Aberporth.
In 1941 one of the experiments being carried out at the PDE was the firing of multiple rockets being fired at the same time, at a certain height a cannister released a 6ft dark blue silk parachute trailing about 2,000 ft of piano wire with a 3ft parachute at the other end. These were fired out to sea when the wind was offshore. On this occasion the wind veered and brought the parachutes back over the village where one wire trailed over the electric cable and down the path from the road to the beach. It had become game with locals to try and capture one of these parachutes before the resident soldiers (101 Z Battery) got hold of them. John Butler ran down the path into the coiled electrified wire and was killed instantly. A local girl Mair Davies was also burnt by the wire, though she is alive and well to this day. This particular experiment was immediately terminated.
I worked at the RAE Aberporth for 35 years and during that time came across 10 of these cannisters
with coiled piano wire in thick grease in an old dump.
I remember being invited in to Owny Villa to view John Butler in his coffin, the family must have moved back to Kent  I do not remember a funeral and there is no record that he was buried at   Aberporth

[warresearcher]

Sut mae,
Thank you.
It is interesting that you say rocket as it did occur on one of the free balloon trial dates from Aberporth. His death was mentioned in some archival documents I have relating to deaths from the trailing of piano wire from the balloons across the country.