The Brabant village Oisterwijk and Operation Market Garden
Aerial photograph of the ammunition train
This RAF reconnaissance photo from 13 September 1944 shows eight German train wagons of the ammunition train on the Oisterwijk railway near the level crossing at road Heusdensebaan. Three days later this spot counted thirty fully loaded ammunition train wagons. The ammunition train was attacked on 16 September and was totally destroyed. This photo shows that the Germans had no problem to load ammunition in the middle of a densely populated area with all the consequences and dangers. A few days after the destruction of the ammunition train, when train movement was partly possible again at that point, the Germans resumed the loading off ammunition. To transport this ammunition from the depot in the Oisterwijk forest the Germans even used army ambulances in the hope not to be attacked by Allied fighter aircraft.
