Date:	Wednesday 15 November 1939
Time:	16:15
Type:	Bristol Blenheim Mk I
Owner/operator:	57 Sqn RAF
Registration:	L1246
MSN:
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 3 / Occupants: 3
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	River Seine, Villeneuve-Saint-Georges, Seine-et-Oise (now Val de Marne -   France
Phase:	Initial climb
Nature:	Ferry/positioning
Departure airport:	Orly, Paris
Destination airport:
Confidence Rating:	Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources

Narrative:
On 30 October 1939 the Blenheim I L1246 of 57 Sqn RAF, flown by Sgt Stanley Farmer and his crew, was attacked by Bf 109s during a reconnaissance sortie but managed to escape and return to Orly airfield near Paris. The undercarriage failed during landing and the aircraft was damaged and left here for repairs. The crew was unhurt.

On 15 November 1939 the repaired Blenheim took off at 16:15 hrs for Orly for a ferry flight. It was again flown by Sgt Farmer. But some minutes later an engine cut and the bomber crashed into River Seine at Villeneuve-Saint-Georges with no survivors.

Crew (all killed):
Sgt Stanley John Farmer (pilot, Service Number 563653, aged 25)
Flt Sgt Frederick Samuel Bowden (observer, Service Number 362800, aged 32)
LAC Ivor Robert William Partlow (wireless operator/air gunner, Service Number 545847, aged 20)

All three crew fatalities were buried at Villeneuve-Saint-Georges, Seine-et-Oise Old Communal Cemetery, Val de Marne, France

1. "Royal Air Force Bomber Command Losses of the Second World War, vol 1: Aircraft and Crew lost during 1939-1940", by W R Chorley. ISBN 0-904597-85-7
2. "The Bristol Blenheim: A Complete History", by Graham Warner. ISBN 0-85979-101-7
3. "Batailles Aériennes n° 71: la RAF en France (4e partie). Les Bristol Blenheim en France" (by Jean-Louis Roba and Michel Ledet. French magazine. Winter 2015)
4. National Archives (PRO Kew) File AIR 81/1661: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C16359464
5. http://francecrashes39-45.net/page_fiche_av.php?id=1843
6. http://www.oldhaltonians.co.uk/pages/rememb/ROH/6.htm
7. http://www.oldhaltonians.co.uk/pages/rememb/ROH/20.htm
8. https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Villeneuve-Saint-Georges
9. http://www.maplandia.com/france/ile-de-france/val-de-marne/creteil/villeneuve-saint-georges/
10. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2234642/farmer,-stanley-john/
11. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2234629/bowden,-frederick-samuel/
12. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2234659/partlow,-ivor-robert-william/
13. https://www.aeroport-paris-orly.com/accidents-1909-1959?lightbox=dataItem-jrd70k9z
14. https://www.avions-bateaux.com/uploads/attachment/produit//produit_2377_9e33a184c4de02dd3bb500ecb7944ee8.pdf (French text P 14-15)

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
24-Oct-2013 08:12	JINX	Added
15-Nov-2013 14:50	Nepa	Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Departure airport]
25-Nov-2013 21:12	JINX	Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Departure airport]
18-Dec-2013 18:08	Nepa	Updated [Operator]
15-Dec-2014 10:58	Jixon	Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Narrative]
22-Jan-2018 10:50	Laurent Rizzotti	Updated [Time, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Location, Phase, Nature, Departure airport, Source, Narrative]
22-Jan-2018 11:41	Laurent Rizzotti	Updated [Narrative]
06-Oct-2018 15:27	Nepa	Updated [Operator, Operator]
25-Jun-2019 00:03	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Other fatalities, Location, Departure airport, Source, Narrative]
25-Jun-2019 00:19	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Source]