British Forces

Sir Arthur Coningham

Sir Arthur Coningham was an RAF Air Marshal who served Britain in WWII, as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief Flying Training Command. Coningham is chiefly remembered as the person most responsible for the development of forward air control parties directing close air support, which he developed as commander of the Western Desert Air Force between 1941 and 1943, and as commander of the tactical air forces in the Normandy campaign, in 1944. In the film Patton, Coningham is played by actor John Barrie. During his scene, in which General George S Patton is complaining about the lack of air cover for American troops, Sir Arthur confirms to Patton that he will see no more German planes. As he has completed his sentence, German planes strafe the compound. Coningham had recently retired from the RAF when the plane he was in disappeared over the western Atlantic. He was one of 25 passengers aboard an Avro Tudor IV G-AHNP Star Tiger together with 6 crew, who were lost when their flight from Santa Maria Airport, in the Azores, failed to reach its destination of Kindley Field, Bermuda. The plane was attempting to locate Bermuda airspace when the Radio Officer, Robert Tuck aboard Star Tiger, requested a radio bearing from Bermuda, but the signal was not strong enough to obtain an accurate reading. Tuck repeated the request eleven minutes later, and this time the Bermuda radio operator was able to obtain a bearing of 72 degrees, accurate to within 2 degrees. The Bermuda operator transmitted this information, and Tuck acknowledged receipt. This was the last communication with the aircraft. The Bermuda radio operator tried several times to contact the Star Tiger again, without success. He then declared a state of emergency. He had heard no distress message, and neither had anyone else, even though many receiving stations were listening on Star Tiger’s frequency. The USAAF personnel operating the airfield immediately organized a rescue effort that lasted for 5 days. Twenty-six aircraft flew 882 hours in total, and surface craft also conducted a search, but no signs of Star Tiger or her 29 passengers and crew were ever found. The disappearance of the Star Tiger baffled the official British investigation, which could offer no explanations for why the plane had disappeared. The disappearance of the Star Tiger is one of the founding mysteries that led to the development of the concept of the Bermuda Triangle.