Studiegroep Luchtoorlog 1939-1945

						1/Lt Garland B. Lloyd was the captain of B-17 42-31299 'Junior' that crashed along the Oranjekanaal, about 1,5 kilometres to the northeast of Hoogersmilde on March 6, 1944. The whole crew bailed out in time and Lloyd landed in a fen on the Hijkerveld. He waded out of the fen and then hid himself in some bushes until the evening. He then started walking west and in the very early morning of the next day, knocked on the door of the farm of Willem Wemer in Makkinga. They took him in and informed the local resistance. The American stayed here for one night and the next day he was brought to a hiding address in Donkerbroek. Lloyd stayed there for a while and was then - via Oosterwolde - brought to Philip Spits in Echtenerbrug where he stayed for a few days.

On May 25, Lloyd arrived at the house of the Visser family in Echten where he stayed until June 19. He was then taken to Workum but returned to the Visser family on June 22, accompanied by 2/Lt. Horace B. White (E0333) and S/Sgt. Joseph P. McDonald (E0239). Lloyd stayed with the Visser family for the night while White and McDonald stayed with Miss Hof-Eppinga in Delfstrahuizen. The next day, the three airmen were collected at their respective addresses and taken to Meppel by car. From there, the local resistance brought the three airmen by train to Amsterdam where Johan Meewis had arranged hiding addresses. 

On June 24, Lloyd, White and McDonald left the Dutch capital by train. Escorted by Henk van Cleef and Wim van der Heijden, they travelled to Veghel. At the station there, members of the Otten family took over the three airmen and cycled with them to their house in the Kerkstraat 6 at Erp, the so-called Pyama-House. Two days later (26 June) the three airmen cycled to Dinther where they were handed over to Cor van Laanen. Lloyd was brought to farmer Harrie van de Ven at the Dolvert A129 in Dinther while McDonald and White cycled on with Van Laanen to Schijndel. On June 27, Lloyd was joined by F/O. Ronald Edward Carter (E0548).

Two days later, Cor van Laanen returned to Van de Ven and cycled with Lloyd and Carter to the bicycle shop of Janus van Mook in Schijndel. On July 4, they continued their journey and escorted by a certain ‘Bim’, the son of a notary from Oisterwijk, Lloyd and Carter went to the station in Schijndel. Here they took the train to Tilburg and on arrival there, the airmen went to stay with the Willekens family at the Heuvel 61 in this town. In the afternoon of July 8, Carter was taken to the house of Jacoba Pulskens (Tante Coba) at the Diepenstraat 25 in Tilburg by Leonie van Harssel and Lloyd was supposed to go there the next day.

But towards noon of the next day, Sunday July 9, the house of ‘Tante Coba’ was raided by the German Sicherheitsdienst and the three airmen who stayed there at that moment, including Carter, were executed in the backyard. Leonie van Harssel, who lived next door to the Willekens family, was arrested by the SD as well and it was obvious that Lloyd had to move to a safer place. The resistance group op Peter Hornman then took care of Lloyd and helped him on his way to Antwerp. Here he was arrested by the German SiPo on July 27. Via Dulag Oberürsel, Lloyd was sent to Stalag Luft 1 Barth where he was liberated by the Russian Army on April 30, 1945.

Garland Lloyd passed away on 21 October 1971 at the age of only 55 at Tallahassee, Leon County, Florida, USA. He is buried at the Bethel United Methodist Church Cemetery in Leon County.