The story of the crash of the English plane at Limeni in April 1944

This text is based on the research of Nikolaos Kalapotharakos and Andreas Kyriakouleas, who, with great respect to history, spoke with eyewitnesses about the time when they were young children. (www.manivoice.gr)

Since the fall of 1943, the occupation of Mani, as well as the war in the eastern and central Mediterranean, had been as follows: The Italians, who had many stations ("carabinieri"), established in large villages, such as Gythio, Areopolis, Itilo, etc., had left, and the Germans no longer had sufficient forces to develop a dense occupation network and remained in Gythio. The English, on the other hand, with air and naval dominance in the area, conducted daily morning air patrols. They sank every boat they found in order not to be picked up and used by the Germans in retreat. During one such operation, one of the two planes lost control and fell into the sea at Limeni.

According to Petros Kalapothakis' testimony, "two planes began to dive from Kutros to Limeni to fire a three-quartered boat and sink it. Instead, the plane struck the mast, lost its balance, and fell after Kokkalo before Saint Sostis. They pulled out a tall, blond and handsome Englishman and brought him to the Port, where Takis Kalapothakis' tavern is nowadays. Our teacher, gymnast and uncle, Nikos Sekouris, gave him artificial respiration, but he did not live. Afterwards, fighters gathered from Itilo and Areopolis, buried him at Agios Sostis at the Port Cemetery, and awarded him with rifles. "

Stefanos Katsakos recalls: "I was not an eyewitness, but as my brother, George told me that there were two planes doing air dives at the Prophet Elias and the ravine area. They shot to sink the Mundrea’s or Maniatea’s or Dimoulea’s boat from Trachila, which was two-masted and sank and went to the bottom. They, later, took it out of the sea by using many barrels. George told me that with the Kyriakians, they went in a boat and took out a half-bodied with a harpoon and a half-alive one and buried them at Agios Sostis. A few years later, the English came and gave George a diploma. A diploma of gratitude from General Alexander. When they came and removed the bodies from the cemetery, they asked our father, Stamatis, "What do you want? Material or moral compensation? "Nothing, "said our father," we did it for our country. "

The written praise, which is preserved to this day, writes:

"This certificate is awarded to George Stamatis Katsakos as a token of gratitude and appreciation for helping the British Commonwealth sailors, soldiers and aviators who helped them escape or escape captivity." - H.R. Alexander

The plane fell at the site of the ancient Roman shipwreck, opposite the north side of the statue of Mavromichalis. It is a "living" monument, which marks a phase in the history of Mani and Europe as well ...