UAE: Historians mark 80th anniversary of three airmen who disappeared after taking off from Sharjah during WWII

Eighty years ago, on September 17, 1942, three airmen serving in the Emirates as Western allies in the region went missing after their aircraft lost communication and disappeared off the Gulf of Oman.

Wireless Operator/Air Gunner Arthur Genny from Surrey, England, and Observer/Pilot Officer Anthony Pontius from the British Channel Island of Jersey, both from the Royal Air Force, and Pilot Sergeant Hunter McGowan from the Royal Australian Air Force, took off from Sharjah on anti-submarine patrol in the Gulf of Oman. They were searching for German U-boats when their aircraft, an RAF Bristol Blenheim Z7418 crashed. The exact location of the crash was never known, and their bodies were never found.

The men were part of British and Allied forces present in what was then the Trucial States to protect the area against threats from Nazi Germany and its allies, Japan and Italy, and signifies how far back Emirati relations began with allies in the West. Pontius is the only known person from Jersey to have died on operations in the Emirates and McGowan is the only known Australian.

"This crash, like the many other incidents that occurred in the UAE, was largely forgotten, however, they still hold significance and are important to remember," said Ali Iqbal Chaudhry, historian and researcher.

Chaudhry studies the Second World War and its impact on the region. He has unearthed singular reports about people and incidents during that period in the Emirates, including this one.

"Sharjah played a really big role in this region during the Second World War because the vital supply lines that were coming from the Indian subcontinent and going to North Africa and Europe were very vital and they needed to be protected and all these anti-submarine patrols happened from Sharjah," he explained.

"So it's very significant that we remember the stories not just for the Allies, not for just the RAF, but also the Emiratis were part of it and were helping these people who were fighting this war," Chaudhry added.

There were a number of other similar incidents that took place in the Emirates during the war, but this was the first incident which resulted in the loss of lives. This was, Iqbal said, mainly due to the unreliable aircraft used at the time.

"The Blenheim aircraft that the RAF squadron used was prone to engine failures and technical issues, it contributed to the deaths of allied airmen more so than enemy action in the region.

In February 1943, during a subsequent crash by a similar plane near the desert of Dhaid, and in an example of true friendship and solidarity, "Emiratis came up to the aid of crashed allied airmen helped and bandaged the wounded, buried the dead and then transported the survivors by camel all the way back to Sharjah in what was reported to be a terrible storm," Chaudhry said.

The only remnant of the 1942 crash was a petrol tank washed up on a beach near Jask. A thorough investigation ruled that there was likely a fire on board, causing the aircraft to crash somewhere in the Gulf of Oman.

The airmen are part of the 11,866 commemorated in the Alamein Memorial in Egypt, which was built to honour troops who died in the Middle East and North Africa during World War II.

"Incidents like this crash, or the sinking of a submarine off Fujairah, show that, although there were no great battles here, the area was involved in the Second World War. It's part of the UAE's history," said Peter Hellyer, UAE writer and historian.