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| Date: | Thursday 16 October 1941 |
| Time: | 05:10 |
| Type: |  Bristol Beaufighter Mk IIF |
| Owner/operator: | 255 Sqn RAF |
| Registration: | R2377 |
| MSN: | |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | North Sea, half a mile from Happisburgh, Norfolk, England -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | RAF Coltishall, Norfolk |
Beaufighter R2377: Take-off at 04:10 hrs for patrol. 16/10/1941
The aircraft crashed in flames to North sea at 05:10 hrs. The plane crashed in flames into sea bearing 110 deg., half a mile from Happisburgh Lighthouse and directly offshore of Happisburgh Cart Gap. No.1 Cromer Life Boat (the "H F Bailey") launched at 05:46 hrs, reaching the position at about 07:30 hrs. Parts of the a/c were found, and "the shattered body of one of the crew" (Tom Varley, radar operator) which was landed at 10:00 hrs. This was a Beaufighter IIF, and 255 Sqn had a spate of crashes caused by engine failures and the inability of the a/c to maintain height on one Merlin.
Crew:
F/Sgt (748632) Walter BARKER (pilot) RAFVR - killed
Sgt (977495) Tom VARLEY (obs) RAFVR - killed
Sources:
http://www.rafcommands.com/forum/showthread.php?12715-Crash-Beaufighter-255-Squadron-RAF,
AIR27/1518, log of the Happisburgh ARP Warden (can be seen online
http://www.happisburgh.org.uk/history/255-squadron),
research by relatives of Walter Barker (Pilot) and 255 Squadron Association.
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 07-Apr-2012 04:29 | Nepa | Added |
| 07-Apr-2012 04:43 | Nepa | Updated [Location, ] |
| 11-Nov-2014 14:05 | Apen | Updated [Location, Narrative, ] |
| 10-Mar-2015 07:56 | angels one five | Updated [Operator, Other fatalities, Location, Narrative, ] |
| 18-Mar-2015 12:22 | Xindel | Updated [Operator, Location, ] |
| 20-Apr-2015 04:16 | angels one five | Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Location, Departure airport, Narrative, ] |
| 20-Apr-2015 04:35 | Angel dot comma | Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Location, Departure airport, ] |
| 29-Jul-2015 13:31 | chris eley | Updated [Location, Source, Narrative, ] |
| 19-Apr-2022 09:05 | Nepa | Updated [Narrative, Operator, ] |
| 22-Aug-2024 11:19 | Nepa | Updated [Time, Source, Narrative, Operator, ] |
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