Date:	Wednesday 12 December 1945
Time:	17:01 LT
Type:	Avro Lancaster Mk I
Owner/operator:	101 Squadron, RAF
Registration:	PA281
MSN:	SR-X
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 5
Other fatalities:	0
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	Skeffling, Holderness, East Yorkshire, England -   United Kingdom
Phase:	En route
Nature:	Military
Departure airport:	RAF Binbrook, Lincolnshire
Destination airport:	RAF Binbrook, Lincolnshire

Narrative:
Avro Lancaster B. Mk. I PA281/SR-N of 101 Squadron RAF: Written off (destroyed) when belly landed at Skeffling, Holderness, East Yorkshire, on 12 December 1945. As far as is known, all five crew survived without injury. By December 1945, Lancasters were being flown with a reduced crew (no Air Gunners on board)

On 12 December 1945 this 101 Squadron aircraft took off from Binbrook to undertake what appears to have been a cross-country training flight. While flying over possibly or just off the East Riding of Yorkshire the aircraft's engines began to fail to the extent that all the engines eventually stopped ninety minutes into the flight. It can be assumed that the aircraft could have been over either the North Sea or The Humber, close to the coast of East Yorkshire, when this occurred, because the pilot managed to glide the aircraft toward Skeffling, Holderness, East Yorkshire.

At 17.01hrs a fast belly landing was made at Skeffling and the Lancaster was badly damaged. It was found that the aircraft had completely run out of fuel. There were five on board at the time, probably pilot, flight engineer, navigator, wireless operator and bomb aimer. By this stage, air gunners were not usually carried, as it was some seven months since there was any threat from enemy fighters.

Prior to this flight, the fuel level warning lights were reported as not working, but had not been repaired, ground crew had also not filled one of the fuel tanks prior to this flight. The pilot and flight engineer did not then check the fuel level state prior to taking off from Binbrook prior to this flight that resulted in the forced landing at Skeffling. The aircraft only ever flew with 101 Squadron, being taken on charge on 16th March 1945, sustaining Cat.E2/FA damage following the crash landing at Skeffling and being struck off charge on 2nd January 1946.

Pilot - Flight Lieutenant Denham William Russell-Smith RAFVR (150608) plus four other crew (names not known)

Skeffling is a village and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England, in an area known as Holderness. It is situated approximately 5 miles (8 km) south of the town of Withernsea and 4 miles (6.4 km) south-east of the village of Partington on the B1445 road from Partington to Easington.

Brief History of Lancaster PA281
Built by Vickers Armstrong at Chester under Contract Acft/2791
16-03-1945: Issued to 101 Sqaudron, RAF Binbrook as 'SR-N'
12-12-1945: Cat.E(FA) destroyed in a flying accidnet at Skeffling, Holderness, East Yorkshire as per the above
02-01-1946: Deemed "damaged beynd repair" and Struck off Charge

1. Air-Britain Royal Air Force Aircraft PA100-RZ999
2. The Lancaster File (James J Halley, Air Britain, 1985)
3. https://www.yorkshire-aircraft.co.uk/aircraft/yorkshire/yorkp45/pa281.html
4. 101 Squadron Operational Record Book (Record of Events for the Period 1 June to31 December 1945): National Archives (PRO Kew) File AIR27/804/11 at https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/D8458771
5. Aircraft Movement Card (Air Ministry Form AM.78): https://lancasterbombersinfo.ipage.com/Data/Form-78s/Lancaster/PA263-PA368/mobile/index.html
6. Aircraft Accident Record Card (Air Ministry Form AM.1180): https://lancasterbombersinfo.ipage.com/Data/Form-1180/Lancaster/1945/December/1.html
7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No._101_Squadron_RAF#Reformation_and_World_War_II
8. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RAF_Binbrook#Bombers
9. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skeffling

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
18-Aug-2013 03:11	JINX	Added
03-Jun-2015 07:29	Weeks	Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, ]
25-Jan-2025 23:21	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Time, Cn, Operator, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Location, Phase, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, Category, ]