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Date: | Tuesday 18 May 1943 |
Time: | 10:15 LT |
Type: | De Havilland DH-82A Tiger Moth |
Owner/operator: | 3 EFTS RNZAF |
Registration: | NZ652 |
MSN: | 82967 |
Fatalities: | Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2 |
Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
Location: | West Eyreton, Canterbury -
New Zealand
|
Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
Nature: | Training |
Departure airport: | RNZAF Harewood, Christchurch, New Zealand |
Destination airport: | |
Narrative:de Havilland DH82a Tiger Moth MSN 82967 (Gipsy Major #82889); Built at Hatfield, UK with RAF serial R5072. Shipped to New Zealand on s.s "Karamea", departing 14.5.40. Taken on charge by the RNZAF as NZ652 at Unit 18 Rongotai 16.8.40. To 3 EFTS Harewood [by 6.41].
Written off (destroyed) when hit trees low-flying, during a 'blind-flying' exercise, and crashed at West Eyreton near Canterbury 18.5.43; both crew killed. According to a contemporary local nrewspaper report ("Evening Post", Volume CXXXV, Issue 117, 19 May 1943, Page 3):
"18 May 1943 - Two members of the Royal New Zealand Air Force, Pilot Officer Raymond Farmer WILSON, (wife, Mrs. T. M. Wilson, 7 Ropata Crescent, Lower Hutt, Wellington) and Pilot Officer Charles Verdun Gore RICHARDSON, (wife, Mrs. M. E. Richardson, c/o Mr. F. Reeves, Wellington Boys' College, Wellington), lost their lives in an aircraft accident near a South Island station, when the aircraft in which they were engaged on an instrument flying practice crashed".
Due to the restrictions of wartime censorship, the exact crash location was not disclosed at the time.
Crew of Tiger Moth NZ652:
Pilot Officer Charles Verdun Gore RICHARDSON RNZAF (Pilot, Service Number: 424548, aged 26) - killed in service 18.5.43, buried Wellington (Karori) Cemetery Ref : 4. G/3. (S).
Pilot Officer Raymond Farmer WILSON (Pilot, Service Number: 437059, aged 32) - killed in service 18.5.43, buried at Lower Hutt (Taita) Cemetery.
Written off the books at RNZAF Harewood, Christchurch 31.5.43 as Cat.E(FA). The reported crash location of West Eyreton is a small rural village in the Canterbury region of New Zealand's South Island. It is west of Kaiapoi and north-west of Eyreton
Sources:
1. Your Tomorrow, Errol Martyn, Vol.2 p.96
2. Evening Post, Volume CXXXV, Issue 117, 19 May 1943, Page 3
3.
https://air-britain.com/pdfs/production-lists/DH82.pdf 4.
http://www.airhistory.org.uk/dh/p829.html 5.
https://www.aucklandmuseum.com/war-memorial/online-cenotaph/record/C31248?n=nz424548&ordinal=0&from=%2Fwar-memorial%2Fonline-cenotaph%2Fsearch 6.
https://www.aucklandmuseum.com/war-memorial/online-cenotaph/record/C21566?n=nz437059&ordinal=0&from=%2Fwar-memorial%2Fonline-cenotaph%2Fsearch 7.
http://www.adf-serials.com.au/nz-serials/nzdh82.htm 8.
https://rnzaf.proboards.com/thread/17600/oxford-pile?page=9 9.
https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/2921275/CHARLES%20VERDUN%20GORE%20RICHARDSON/ 10.
https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/2920516/RAYMOND%20FARMER%20WILSON/ 11.
https://www.nzwargraves.org.nz/casualties/charles-verdun-gore-richardson 12.
https://www.sooty.nz/miscairdeaths.html Revision history:
Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
11-Jun-2009 18:27 |
angels one five |
Added |
28-Sep-2009 02:29 |
angels one five |
Updated |
21-Jan-2012 06:32 |
Nepa |
Updated [Time, Registration, Operator, Source, Narrative] |
12-Sep-2013 02:07 |
angels one five |
Updated [Time, Aircraft type, Cn, Operator, Location, Departure airport, Narrative] |
04-Feb-2019 15:39 |
Nepa |
Updated [Operator, Operator] |
18-Aug-2021 16:14 |
Dr. John Smith |
Updated [Time, Operator, Location, Departure airport, Source, Narrative, Category] |
18-Aug-2021 16:16 |
Dr. John Smith |
Updated [Narrative] |
18-Aug-2021 20:16 |
Anon. |
Updated [Operator, Narrative, Operator] |
27-Aug-2021 00:28 |
Ron Averes |
Updated [Location] |
26-Jan-2022 06:05 |
Ron Averes |
Updated [Aircraft type] |