ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 22494
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| Date: | Sunday 14 July 1940 |
| Time: | evening |
| Type: |  Lockheed Hudson Mk I |
| Owner/operator: | 220 Sqn RAF |
| Registration: | N7231 |
| MSN: | NR-S |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 4 / Occupants: 4 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Boldon Colliery, County Durham, England -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | RAF Thornaby, North Yorkshire |
Lockheed Hudson Mk.I N7231 (NR-S) 220 Squadron, RAF: Written off (destroyed) when crashed on return from patrol, all four crew killed. According to the official Air Ministry file into the incident (File AIR 81/1114): "Hudson N7251 [*sic] collided with a balloon barrage cable, 14 July 1940. Pilot Officer G W F Carey, Pilot Officer P K Vartan, Sergeant V G Gent and Sergeant C A Matthews: report of deaths"
Took off from RAF Thornaby, North Yorkshire at 18:46 hrs for a combat air patrol (Patrol Code-named "SA3"). On return, en route to RAF Thornaby, the aircraft collided with a barrage balloon cable and spun into the ground at Boldon Colliery, County Durham. After the crash, the Hudson caught fire, and the bomb load exploded. No survivors, all four crew killed
Crew of Hudson N7231:
P/O (36169) Garth Wells Fuller Carey DFC (NZ.Pilot) RAF: killed in action 14/07/1940
P/O (41632) Phillip Knox Vartan (NZ.Pilot) RAF: killed in action 14/07/1940
Sgt (538451) George Alexander Matthews (Air Gunner) RAF: killed in action 14/07/1940
Sgt (624628) Victor George Gent (WOp./AG) RAF: killed in action 14/07/1940
Two of the crew - P/O Garth Carey and P/O Philip Vartan - were buried at Hylton (Castletown) Cemetery, North Hylton, Sunderland, County Durham. Sgt George Matthews was buried at Winlaton (St. Patrick) Churchyard and Hookergate Cemetery, Winlaton, Gateshead, County Durham, and Sgt George Gent was buried at Linthorpe Cemetery, Middlesborough, North Yorkshire.
Note that the official Air Ministry file AIR 81/1114 contains an error (presumed to be a "typo"): The Lockheed Hudson involved in the above incident was N7231 and NOT N7251. (Lockheed Hudson N7251 never served with 220 Squadron; its career was with 224 Squadron, 233 Squadron, 1 (Coastal) OTU and 83 Group Communications Flight before being relegated to become a ground instructional airframe 4266M in October 1943)
Sources:
1. Royal Air Force Aircraft N1000-N9999 (James J Hallet, Air Britain, 1977 p 45)
2. National Archives (PRO Kew) File AIR 81/1114: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C14502926
3. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2838442/carey,-garth-wells-fuller/
4. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2838464/vartan,-phillip-knox/
5. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2836279/matthews,-george-alexander/
6. http://www.yorkshire-aircraft.co.uk/aircraft/planes/40/n7231.html
7. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2409232/gent,-victor-george/
8. https://www.baaa-acro.com/crash/crash-lockheed-l-414-hudson-i-boldon-colliery-3-killed
9. https://www.nelsam.org.uk/NEAR/Losses/Losses-WWII1939-40.htm
10. http://www.planetrace.co.uk/1940-1949_28.html
11. http://www.aucklandmuseum.com/war-memorial/online-cenotaph/record/C21921
12. http://www.lostancestors.eu/wargraves/newzealand/newzealand01.htm
13. https://www.nzwargraves.org.nz/casualties/garth-wells-fuller-carey
14. https://www.tracesofwar.com/persons/66126/Carey--Garth-Wells-Fuller.htm .
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 10-Aug-2008 01:36 | Anon. | Added |
| 21-Jan-2012 04:13 | Nepa | Updated [Operator, Departure airport, Narrative] |
| 21-Jan-2012 04:13 | Nepa | Updated [Aircraft type] |
| 24-Mar-2013 20:11 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Location, Source, Narrative] |
| 15-Oct-2019 17:41 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Time, Cn, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Phase, Departure airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 15-Oct-2019 17:44 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Narrative] |
| 15-Oct-2019 17:45 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Source, Narrative] |
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