Date:	Wednesday 18 October 1939
Time:
Type:	Armstrong Whitworth Whitley Mk III
Owner/operator:	102 (Ceylon) Sqn RAF
Registration:	K8996
MSN:	AWA.1449
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 7 / Occupants: 9
Other fatalities:	0
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	RAF Catterick, North Yorkshire, England -   United Kingdom
Phase:	Initial climb
Nature:	Military
Departure airport:	RAF Catterick, North Yorkshire
Destination airport:	RAF Wick, Caithness

Narrative:
No.41 Sqn was moving from Catterick to Wick. The 12 Spitfires took off, to be followed by a Whitley of 102 Sqn carrying the ground party of five 41 Sqn personnel. The Whitley had crew of four.

Stores were also being transported to Wick in the bomber. The Whitley took off and after climbing to about 10ft pitched up into an extreme climb, stalled at about 100ft, and dived into the aerodrome, exploding. All 4 crew members died as well as 3 of the 41 Sqn passengers. Two of the passengers survived with serious injuries.
Crew:-
Pilot - Sgt Herbert John Gaut (562936) RAF - killed
Pilot/Nav. - P/O Reginald Arthur Morton Luckman (39744) RAF : killed (Commission Gazetted : Tuesday 18 May, 1937)
WOp/AG - AC.2 Charles Paterson (620054) RAF : killed
Passenger - AC.1 John Baker Clark (567489) RAF : killed
Passenger - Sgt Arthur Vincent (560443) RAF : killed
Passenger - Sgt Albert Harris (563150) RAF : killed
Passenger/WOp/Mechanic - AC1 Horace Jones RAF (533682) RAF : killed
Passenger, occupying rear turret - Sgt Donald E Gibbs, slightly injured.
Passenger - Cpl W Jenkinson, seriously injured.

1. Royal Air Force Aircraft K1000-K9999 (James J. Halley, Air Britain, 1976, page 75)
2. http://www.ne-diary.bpears.org.uk/Inc/ISeq_01.html
3. http://www.yorkshire-aircraft.co.uk/aircraft/yorkshire/york39/k8996.html
4. http://www.airsceneuk.org.uk/wattisham/424-41sq/41sq.htm
5. http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C587549
6. https://www.baaa-acro.com/crash/crash-armstrong-whitworth-aw38-whitley-iii-raf-catterick-7-killed
7. http://www.rcawsey.co.uk/Acc1939a.htm
8. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2811920/gaut,-herbert-john/
9. Rob Davis Bomber Command Losses Database

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
08-Sep-2011 03:50	angels one five	Added
30-Dec-2011 15:25	Uli Elch	Updated [Time, Aircraft type, Registration, Operator, Location, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, ]
25-Jan-2012 15:05	Nepa	Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Location, ]
31-May-2013 16:10	Nepa	Updated [Operator, Narrative, ]
23-Jul-2013 08:44	angels one five	Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Location, Narrative, ]
10-Oct-2013 08:27	JINX	Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Location, Nature, ]
17-Dec-2013 17:31	Nepa	Updated [Operator, ]
05-Mar-2014 06:41	Nepa	Updated [Operator, ]
23-Dec-2014 23:00	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Location, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, ]
18-Jan-2016 23:29	JINX	Updated [Operator, Phase, Departure airport, Narrative, ]
19-Jan-2016 18:00	Opietz	Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, ]
16-Dec-2016 03:03	angels one five	Updated [Narrative, ]
23-Apr-2018 19:59	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Departure airport, Source, ]
24-Jun-2018 01:39	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Source, Narrative, ]
02-Oct-2018 20:13	Dr.John Smith	Updated [Cn, Source, ]
10-Jul-2023 20:21	Nepa	Updated
16-Dec-2023 14:42	Rob Davis	Updated [Source, Narrative, ]