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Sgt Miller, one of the surviving members gave a brief report on this loss, accounting that the plane was hit by enemy fighters with the Flight Engineer being killed then and the remaining crewmen including Lt Astleford (later found dead), bailing out of the stricken plane without much difficulty with the ship then afire. Sgt Miller stated also that Lt Astleford was alive when exiting the ship. But later the Germans showed the survivors this Officer's jacket and said he was dead in the plane from his wounds. Another survivor, Lt Hamann, also confirmed the only crewmember who did not bail out successfully was Flight Engineer Sgt Crabbe, who was killed in flight about ten minutes after the target when the plane came under attack and they left formation.
Lt Hamann also related that German guards told the survivors that one of the crewmen had been killed by civilians, and that a German boy had showed him personally a parachute which was that of Lt Astleford. It was Hamann's supposition that the Navigator had been shot after bail out landing as he tried to escape capture.
T/Sgt Charles W. Crabbe first buried at Temporary American Military Cemetery Ardennes, Belgium Block KK, Row 5, Grave 124.