ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 163089
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| Date: | Thursday 21 May 1942 |
| Time: | day |
| Type: |  Supermarine Spitfire Mk II |
| Owner/operator: | 53 OTU RAF |
| Registration: | P7781 |
| MSN: | |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Sea off Saint Donats, Glamorgan -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Training |
| Departure airport: | RAF Llandow, Glamorgan |
| Return. |
Crashed in the sea during a training exercise.
Pilot:
Sgt James French Mark RAFVR - killed.
R.I.P.
P7781 came off the production line and taken on RAF strength with 39MU on the 22nd of December 1940. Her first squadron was No.64 squadron at RAF Hornchurch on the 14th of January 1941. She flew her first operational sortie on the 2nd of February and flown by P/O Gray on an offensive patrol over the channel, but nothing seen. P/O Gray flew her on the next five patrols. The squadron went to Scotland on defensive duties and rest. During this time, it is recorded with the National Archives that a Sgt A. G. Warwick was injured whilst flying P7781 on the 25th of July 1941. However, the squadron records have nothing recorded? An unfortunate casualty of records kept during the war, with so much activity in the squadrons.
P7781 ended up with 417 squadron at RAF Charmey Down on the 10th of January 1942 after damage repair. She arrived along with two other mark 2’s that completed the intake and change from the older mark one’s. As the aircraft were being ferried in, the pilots were involved with holming their shooting skills on the clay traps. On the 13th of January the weather turned bad with heavy snowstorms that fell for the next eight days! The snow ploughs took two days to clear the runways. The mark 2 Spitfires only stayed with the squadron for a month, being exchanged for the mark five and due to the extreme bad weather, only flew a total of eight hours. Out of the 27 on charge, there were six accidents within the short time with the squadron.
P7781 was ferried to 53 OTU, arriving on the 15th of February. Three months later it crashed into the sea off St Donats. The cause was never established!
Crew:
Sgt James French Mark 20yo 1343537 RAFVR. Pilot. Killed.
Son of William Robert Somers Mark and Norah Eveline Mark, of Glasgow.
Burial:
Glasgow (Eastwood) Old & New. Section. K. (New Part). Grave 155.
Wreckage:
Unknown.
Sources:
Spitfire production list (NB.The date of this loss is given erroneously as 21/5/43).
CWCG
nationalarchives.gov.uk
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 09-Jan-2014 02:39 | angels one five | Added |
| 09-Jan-2014 02:44 | angels one five | Updated [Source, Narrative] |
| 16-Jul-2015 20:50 | Angel dick one | Updated [Operator, Departure airport, Narrative] |
| 01-Feb-2021 07:31 | angels one five | Updated [Narrative] |
| 11-May-2022 19:52 | Davies 62 | Updated [Phase, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 05-Dec-2023 23:43 | angels one five | Updated [Time, Phase] |
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