From a WIX Facebook post…
Mystery of the Boston bomber wreck solved! In co-operation with Finnish Aviation Museum, Finnish National Bureau of Antiquities and Nord Stream 2 AG gas pipelin...e company, we got the opportunity to dive the previously unidentified WWII era aircraft wreck Douglas A-20 Havoc/Boston bomber at 100 m depth in the Northern Baltic Sea. This almost intact twin-engine bomber was found by Nordstream 2 company during their seabed surveys. During our dives last July we discovered and identified the original manufacturer's serial number, as well as the operating squadron's tactical number, "White 24". With this data, and other details of the wreck, and aided by Russian, German and Finnish sources and researchers, curator of Aviation Museum Matias Laitinen was able to put together the pieces of the puzzle: the entire history of the aircraft from the manufacturer's plant to its' loss! The story behind the aircraft and its' crew turned out to be incredible.
This A-20 was built in USA and delivered to Soviet Union under Lend-Lease act. It was flown by 51st Mine and Torpedo Air Regiment of Soviet Baltic Fleet Naval Air Forces. On 18th Sept. 1944 "White 24" aircraft attacked German cargo ship m/s Moltkefelt, which was escorted by minesweeper M 151. M 151 AA-gunners opened fire and scored hits, which resulted in pilot Gusman Miftahudinov having to ditch the aircraft. Crew, Miftahudinov, gunner/radio operator Gleb Lokalov and navigator Yuri Aksenov got out from the sinking aircraft onto a life raft. They drifted a few days in the tiny raft to Åland Archipelago near Kökar island, where they were rescued by Finnish Coast Guard "Motor Yacht" MP-103! Finland had just made armistice with Soviet Union, so Miftahudinov's crew didn't become POWs, and were thus returned to Soviet Union at best possible speed. After a few months, Miftahudinov's crew flew together again.. On 14th Jan. 1945 they were shot down in an air raid against German shipping in the Bay of Gdansk, with the entire crew perishing in the crash.
Twin machinegun turret. This A-20-G20 subtype was the first G-series model equipped with electrically operated "Martin electric" turret armed with two 0.5" Browning machine guns. The aircraft is almost intact, but half buried into the bottom organic sediment. Cockpit, engine cowlings and leading edges of the wings are in the sediment. Tail is pointing up at a 20 degree angle.
Serial number 42-86826 was readable on the vertical stabilizer. It is the original manufacturing number painted in the USA, positively identifying the aircraft. This Douglas A-20-G20 Havoc was built in the Douglas plant at Santa Monica, California, USA in between July and September 1943. All in all, Douglas built 7478 A-20 aircraft. Almost half of which, 3140 were delivered to Soviet Union under "...Lend-Lease" act. Soviets adopted the British name "Boston" for all their Havocs. Above the serial number, there is the "tactical number", a unit and plane specific number painted by Soviets. This number "24", painted in white, was used by 3rd Squadron of the 51st MTAP (Mine and Torpedo Air Regiment) of Soviet Naval Air Forces and flown by Gusman Miftahudinov on 18th Sep. 1944.
Shows how the fuselage is embedded into the bottom sediment. Soft sediment reaches up almost to landing flaps in the inner wings, below the machine gun turret. Tail is to the left. Originally this A-20G was a two-seater, pilot and gunner only. Soviets modified the plane to accommodate a third crewmember, the navigator, in the rear fuselage behind the machine gunner's position. Careful study of the image reveals the rectangular shapes above and front of an oval shaped hole in the fuselage. These are navigator's windows covered in silt. Adding the navigator to the crew reflects how much Soviets appreciated this aircraft type as a marine attack bomber.
