Lenggong is a town in Perak, packed with many prehistoric wonders, with Lenggong Valley / Gua Harimau as the most important archeological site in Peninsular Malaysia, paired with ancient meteor crash site at Bukit Bunuh, and Supervolcano Toba ash formation at Bukit Sapi. Another less known historic treasure is the remains of British Royal Air Force (RAF)’s Bristol Brigand serial number RH755, crashed in Bintang Hijau Forest Reserve.
The crash of RH755 took place on 3rd of May 1952, during the Malayan Emergency. On that day, Bristol Brigand RH755 took part in a bombing run, along with other 3 aircrafts, against the Malayan National Liberation Army in the Malaya forest. After the first two aircrafts fired their 16 rounds of rocket, the Bristol Brigand Bomber got into its position for the rocket dive.
Tragedy struck as soon as the first rocket was fired, one of the Bristol Brigand RH755’s wings was seen broken off, and the aircraft crashed right into the jungle, blowing up into flames. All three crews were declared Killed-In-Action, and their remains were recovered 6 years later and buried in Cheras War Cemetery. You may find the details in this record of Terry Stringer, a Royal Air Force crew who was to be on board the RH755 during the day of the crash, but a duty call took him to another mission instead.
In the following hike, I joined Trailblazer Hiking Club Malaysia (THCM) for an expedition in Bintang Hijau Forest Reserve, in search of the remains of the crashed RH755 Bomber. Along the trail, we also found a crater-like depression on the ground, believed to be resulted from one of the rocket explosions during the bombing run.
Bristol Brigand RH755 Crash Site Starting Point
Due to the very limited parking space and rugged road to the trailhead, THCM has arranged 4×4 transportation to pick us up from R&R Tasik Raban, where there are plenty of free parking spots for our vehicles. The 4×4 took us directly to the trailhead to the crash site.
8.36am: After a briefing by THCM, we entered the trailhead beside a private house. The trail passes through private land, hence it is important to obtain permit and approval beforehand.
(+14)8.50am: Crossing a stream with a mini waterfall and a large pool.
(+9)8.59am: A second steam crossing after passing through more of the private land. Both crossings have rocks to step on without wetting the shoes.
(+5)9.04am: After that, we started the hike in the jungle with some moderate to high steepness slopes.
Lenggong Jungle Trekking to Bomber Crash Site
(+26)9.30am: Passing by what I called the ‘Butt Tree’ and the ‘Dotted Vine’
(+16)9.46am: We also passed by what seems to be a small crater created by a bomb explosion, probably dropped/fired by one of the British aircrafts.
(+7)9.53am: We crossed and walked by the side of some small streams along the trail.
(+15)10.08am: A short stop to admire a huge tree.
(+6)10.14am: Over the big rock here, we were supposed to head straight (follow the markers), but the group decided to turn right and climbed down to the stream below for a break.
10.36am: After about 20 minutes of break by the stream, we headed back up and continued on. We passed by the first sign of the crash: A remains of a piece of the skin of the aircraft at upriver.
(+7)10.43am: The trail got very steep and slippery when we left the stream and climbed up towards the crash site.
Bristol Brigand RH755 Aircraft Wreckage
(+17)11am: Finally, we found the first large wreckage remains of the British Bomber Aircraft: One of Bristol Brigand dual engines. (Approx coordination: 5.019500, 100.917350)
Bristol Brigand engine side view, attached with the landing gear leg.
A closer frontal view of RH755’s engine: The notorious Bristol Centaurus Engine.
A little further up the trail, we found one of the aircraft’s 4-bladed propellers.
Close up look of ROTOL’s Propeller (manufactured by a joint venture of Rolls-Royce and Bristol).
A little further away, is where one of the four 20 mm Hispano Mk V cannons located at (approx coordination: 5.019180, 100.917110). I was quite disappointed by the race event tag tied on the historical machine gun wreckage by the organizer of Malaysia Iron Bound Race 2021. They should have placed it somewhere else, or at least remove it after the race. Anyway, they are organizing the A1 World Cup 2022, with Malaysia’s race series also happening in Lenggong. If you are a hardcore racer, you may visit Malaysia Iron Bound A1 Series.
Here are some of the other wreckage parts we found around the area:
At 1pm, we were back to the first waterfall area and exited the jungle into the private land.
P.s. There were a moderate amount of leeches on the trails. We found this well-fed one dropped off from one of our members.
We reached the exit point at 1.15pm and waited for the 4×4 to bring us back to our vehicles parked at Tasik Raban Rest Stop.
Permit application to enter Bintang Hijau Forest Reserve & Trail Map to RH755 Crash Site
The permit application for Lenggong forest area, including Bintang Hijau Forest Reserve where the crash site is located, falls under the Pejabat Hutan Daerah Hulu Perak (Gerik) (forestry district office). You may contact them via email (huluperakforestry@yahoo.com) or phone (+605 791 2384) for the forest permit application to visit the crash site. This Bintang Hijau Forest Reserve area is not available in Perak’s e-permit online application system, so you need to apply directly with Gerik’s forestry district office.
The trail towards the crash site was rather clear to follow with frequent markers, but some parts might be a little bit tricky if you don’t pay attention. To avoid locals’ private land being disturbed by unapproved visitors, you may request the GPX file and the starting point GPS location from me by emailing to me at jenn@meowtainpeople.com, with attachments of your approved permit.
Alternatively, you may join Trailblazer Hiking Club Malaysia (THCM) and look out for their future events, as they may be organizing this Lenggong trip again.
Lata Kekabu
After returning to our vehicles, we traveled to Taman Eko Rimba Lata Kekabu for the easily accessible waterfalls. There were a lot of paths to various facilities there, just keep to the left, follow the main river upstream to reach the famed Lata Kekabu falls. You would see some other waterfalls and pools with ‘Do not swim’ sign boards along the way.
After walking on a short trail and down a flight of stairs, you will reach Lata Kekabu waterfalls.
You may continue further up the trail before going down the stairs.
A closer look of Lata Kekabu with a water catchment pool(?).
A water gate to control the flow of water from the catchment pool.
Next up, we traveled further North to the epic waterfall of Lata Puteh.
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*Captain Planet passing by* Remember, please take care of our environment, and please don’t destroy the Nature. Leave no trash behind and take back only photos and memories (and also some trash if you can). Walk on the designated path and stay in the middle as much as you can, so that the exposed soil doesn’t spread/corrode further. BE ONE WITH NATURE *flies away*
