This information is added by users of ASN. Neither ASN nor the Flight Safety Foundation are responsible for the completeness or correctness of this information.
If you feel this information is incomplete or incorrect, you can
submit corrected information.
Date: | Friday 24 November 1939 |
Time: | day |
Type: | Fairey Battle Mk I |
Owner/operator: | 9 BGS RAF |
Registration: | L5256 |
MSN: | |
Fatalities: | Fatalities: 3 / Occupants: 3 |
Other fatalities: | 3 |
Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
Location: | 4 miles NNW of RAF Penrhos, Caernavonshire -
United Kingdom
|
Phase: | En route |
Nature: | Military |
Departure airport: | RAF Penrhos, Caernavonshire |
Destination airport: | |
Confidence Rating: | Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources |
Narrative:Fairey Battle Mk.I L5256, 9 BGS (Bombing & Gunnery School), RAF Penrhos, Caernavonshire: Written off (destroyed) 24/11/39 in a mid air collision with Fairey Battle L5255, four miles North-North-West of Penrhos, Caernavonshire. All six crew (three in each aircraft) were killed. Crew of Battle L5256 were:
Flt Lt Aird Arthur Deacon (Canadian, Service Number 41346, aged 22) killed
AC.1 Thomas Douglas King (Service Number 635974, aged 18) killed
AC.2 Frederick Shepherd (Service Number 635980, aged 21) killed
Two things are notable about the official Air Ministry Board of Inquiry file into the accident (File AIR 81/1681); first, although most sources state that there were six fatalities (three in each aircraft), file Air 81/1681 only lists three ("Pilot Officer K P Hamilton, Aircraftman G D King, Aircraftman F Shepherd"). That is, one in Battle L5225 and two in Battle L5256.
Second, the file AIR 81/1681 is closed to the public, and therefore unavailable to researchers, until 1 January 2042, some 103 years after the accident. The decision to retain the file and keep it closed was taken by the National Archives in 2015 on the grounds of "Exemption 1: Personal information where the applicant is a 3rd party" and "Exemption 2: Information provided in confidence".
Sources:
1. Royal Air Force Aircraft L1000-N9999 (James J. Halley, Air Britain, 1983)
2. The Battle File (Sidney Shail, Air Britain, 1997 p 146)
3. National Archives (PRO Kew) Air 81/1681:
https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C16359512 4.
http://www.rcawsey.co.uk/Acc1939a.htm 5.
https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2736223/deacon,-aird-arthur/ 6.
https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2697984/king,-thomas-douglas/ 7.
https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2735938/shepherd,-frederick/ 8.
http://www.rafcommands.com/forum/showthread.php?17720-LAC-Roland-Alexander-STIRLING-d-24-Nov-1939 .
Revision history:
Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
27-Apr-2018 18:58 |
Dr. John Smith |
Added |
28-Nov-2018 22:30 |
Nepa |
Updated [Operator, Operator] |
26-Jun-2019 19:55 |
Dr. John Smith |
Updated [Source] |
26-Jun-2019 20:06 |
Dr. John Smith |
Updated [Source, Narrative] |
26-Jun-2019 20:07 |
Dr. John Smith |
Updated [Narrative] |