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Military aircraft crashes in the
south west
Midlands - 1946 to 1949
Details of the crashes and the names of the
aircrew involved
appear on this page. Please contact
us if you are related to somebody on the
list, or know of a
photograph of them. If original photographs or papers
are still in the
family, we can help to caption photographs and explain
the codes and
nicknames that were used at the time. We appreciate
the opportunity to
copy original material for the museum's archive.
The Midland Aircraft
Recovery Group has found the sites of
many of the crashes, but we are still looking for a
significant number,
so we'd like to hear from anyone who can pinpoint
a crash that
we've listed. We are always looking for
photographs, log books and
anecdotes relevant to the units based in the Midlands.
The
details
below are have been compiled from numerous sources of
information in the public domain over many years.
We've done our best,
but errors are inevitable. Please contact us if you
have more accurate
information on any of the crashes or people listed, or
can add the
names of crew that we haven't traced. Thank you.
30/01/1946 Wellington LP875 of 21 OTU crashed on approach
to
Moreton-in-Marsh. F/O H Annable and Sgt J A Neston were
unhurt; F/O C R
Bluemell, F/O J A
Turner, Sgt A Wells and F/O D V Anderson were all injured.
04/02/1946 Hotspur HH596 of 3 GTS was overturned by a gale
at Gaydon.
05/02/1946 Wellington LN407 of 107 Sub Storage Unit caught
fire and was
damaged beyond repair in a hangar fire at Honeybourne.
Wellington LP350
was
also destroyed. There were no injuries.
18/02/1946 Wellington PG150 of 21 OTU swung on landing at
Moreton-in-Marsh and the undercarriage collapsed. F/O T H
James, Sgt
Telford, F/Sgt Soall, F/O Errington and F/Sgt Jones were
all unhurt.
21/02/1946 Lancaster PB373 of 115 caught fire in the air
and exploded
near
Leamington. Pilot F/Lt J D Cantrell and his crew, N J
Newman, D F
Payne,
F R Berry, D W Crutchly and R Stedman were all killed.
28/02/1946 Beaufighter RD355 of Signals Flying Unit
undershot landing
at Honiley. Pilot Group Captain Vickers and his navigator
were unhurt.
07/03/1946 Wellington PG392 of 21 OTU had an engine
failure on take off
from Moreton-in-Marsh and the undercarriage was raised to
stop. F/O S E
Judd,
W/O K H Shepherd and Sgt Kew were all unhurt. Sgt Turton
and Sgt
Gregory were injured.
11/03/1946 Oxford PH208 of the Signals Flying Unit force
landed at
Meriden following engine failure. W/O Belcham was unhurt.
19/03/1946 Spitfire NH695 of 1 Ferry Pilots Pool crashed
into a wood
near Bewdley. The female pilot, First Officer Rosamund
King
Everard-Steenkamp, was killed.
27/03/1946 Hotspur BT895 of 3 GTS was hit by Hotspur HH120
while parked
at Wellesboune Mountford.
29/03/1946 Hotspur HH323 of 3 GTS was destroyed when hit
by Master
EM266 at Gaydon.
01/04/1946 Master DM275 of 3 GTS crashed on landing at
Wellesbourne
Mountford. No casualties.
02/04/1946 Hotspur HH231 of 3 GTS flew into ground in
night landing at
Wellesbourne Mountford.
16/04/1946 Hotspur BT917 of 3 GTS undershot landing at
Wellesbourne
Mountford.
23/04/1946 Harvard FS745 of 21 SFTS spun into ground at
Exhall during
firing practice. Pilot Ac2 W E Petch was killed.
09/05/1946 Meteor EE518 being tested by Glosters broke up
while flying
over Defford airfield. Pilot Llewlyn Moss killed.
13/05/1946 Hotspur HH326 of 3 GTS undershot and hit fence
at Gaydon.
18/05/1946 Hotspur BT632 of 3 GTS was damaged beyond
repair in a heavy
landing at Gaydon.
07/06/1946 Mosquito PF577 of Signals Flying Unit suffered
a collapsed
undercarriage at Honiley. Crew OK.
19/07/1946 Spitfire PL758 of the Signals Flying Unit force
landed near
Warwick after an engine failure. W/O J S Tebbutt was
unhurt.
31/07/1946 Wellington LP920 of 21 OTU overshot a night
landing at
Moreton-in-Marsh. F/O R Broadbent and his crew were
unhurt.
21/08/1946 Harvard FT359 of 20 SFTS undershot landing at
Church
Lawford. Pilot unhurt.
27/08/1946 Tiger Moth DE921 of 3 GTS hit the ground at
Lighthorne when
low flying. W/O Rennie and W/O Bright were both killed.
06/09/1946 Wellington PG135 of 21 OTU stalled when low
flying and
crashed at Long Compton. F/O D J Ferdinando, F/Lt K G J
Gratton, F/Sgt
R Dunn,
Sgt W B Greatrix and Sgt D E Robinson were all killed.
23/09/1946 Harvard FT262 of 20 SFTS hit high tension
cables at Church
Lawford. Pilot unhurt.
18/11/1946 Anson MG865 1 FU Hit building after brakes
failed at
Pershore. F/O Corfield was unhurt.
19/11/1946 Hotspur HH789 of 3 GTS was towed into a bowser
at
Wellesbourne Mountford.
17/12/1946 Hotspur HH420 of 3 GTS flew into trees at night
at
Wellesbourne. F/Sgt Cameron was unhurt.
19/12/1946 Oxford HM621from the Royal Navy, but attached
to RAF
Defford,
crashed at Gotherington. M C Nicholson and J A Whiter were
killed.
16/03/1947 There was a gale, which destroyed the following
aircraft at
Honeybourne: Hamilcars LA632 and NX873 and Wellington
PG177, all of 107
Sub Storage Unit and Wellington NC481 of 10 OTU.
28/03/1947 Tempest PR802 of the Telecommunications Flying
Unit
overturned while landing at Defford. F/L J W Patterson was
slightly
injured.
28/04/1947 Wellington JA349 was hit by Wellington LR130
while parked at
Honeybourne. Both of them were on the strength of RAF
Honeybourne.
29/05/1947 Mosquito TW231 of Telecommunications Flying
Unit was hit by
Lancaster NX618 while parked at Defford.
16/06/1947 Mosquito TV965 of 1 Ferry Unit crashed at Hill
near
Pershore. S/Ldr Trousdale and F/Lt White were both killed.
10/07/1947 Harvard FS835 of 20 SFTS was hit by Harvard
KF198 while
waiting to take off from Church Lawford.
10/10/1947 Mosquito TE812 of 1 Ferry Unit belly landed at
Pershore.
01/12/1947 Oxford PH355 of 1 PRFU spun into the ground at
Blockley.
S/Ldr A J Madge was killed.
09/01/1948 Harvard FS725 of 2 FTS belly landed at Church
Lawford. There
were no casualties.
13/01/1948 Anson LT745 TFU Brakes failed while taxying and
hit another
aircraft at Defford.
14/01/1948 Mosquito TE872 of 1 Ferry Unit crashed on
emergency approach
to Pershore. Pilot F/O Burgess was killed and Ac1
Griffiths was injured.
12/02/1948 Mosquito VT594 of CFS crash landed during
practice overshoot
at Moreton-in-Marsh. There were no casualties.
22/03/1948 Mosquito RS567 of 2 FP belly landed at
Pershore.
06/05/1948 Mosquito HJ991 of CFS hit a tree in Batsford
Park while
overshooting at Moreton-in-Marsh. F/Lt Gordon Hampton and
F/Lt T
Fletcher were injured.
04/08/1948 Mosquito TW116 of CFS caught fire on the ground
at
Moreton-in-Marsh.
04/11/1948 Oxford PK293 of 1689 Flight belly landed in a
field near
Rugby and was subsequently written off. Names of crew not
traced.
20/01/1949 Mosquito VT608 of CFS crashed on overshoot at
Moreton-in-Marsh. Crew OK.
19/02/1949 Anson VV243 2 ANS collided with a civilian
Dakota, G-AHCW
north
of Coventry. On the Anson, pilot or navigation instructor
S/Ldr Anthony Ronald Rush, 2nd pilot K
Suwala,
signaller G C Tillion, pupil navigator Cadet John S
Mackison were all killed. Ten
people
died on the Dakota: captain Sidney McDermott, first
officer Geoffrey D Kershaw, radio officer George W
Stamper, steward John A T
Smith, Eric M Cairns, F Hauersley, Peter
(Peitrangelo) Coia, Mr & Mrs Joseph E Michaels
and Henry C Aitken. The Dakota had served in the RAF
as KG585.
08/04/1949 Mosquito VT581 of CFS suffered a collapsed
undercarriage at
Moreton-in-Marsh. Crew OK.
13/04/1949 Meteor VT340 of Radar Research Establishment
crashed at
Bransford during instrument flying. Fate of crew unknown.
23/05/1949 Lancaster NX789 of EAAS caught fire on approach
to Baginton;
destroyed by fire on ground. No casualties.
04/07/1949 Mosquito LR556 of CFS force landed at
Moreton-in-Marsh after
an engine failure. Crew OK.
19/07/1949 Anson NK973 1 School of Photography Seat
unlocked; swung on
take off at Wellesbourne Mountford. No injuries.
04/12/1949 Seafire SX282 of 1833 Squadron spun into the
ground at
Wolvey. Lt M H Ryley was killed.
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