Date:	Wednesday 4 November 1953
Time:	day
Type:	Gloster Meteor F Mk 8
Owner/operator:	245 (Northern Rhodesia) Sqn RAF
Registration:	WK886
MSN:
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	North Sea, 15 miles east of Acklington, Northumberland, England -   United Kingdom
Phase:	En route
Nature:	Military
Departure airport:	RAF Acklington, Northumberland
Destination airport:	RAF Acklington, Northumberland
Confidence Rating:	Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources

Narrative:
Gloster Meteor WK886: Delivered 8/6/1953. Written off (destroyed) 4/11/1953 when crashed into the North Sea, 15 miles East of Acklington, Northumberland.

The Meteor was engaged in air-to-air live firing practice against a towed target drogue, when the flag of the target drogue broke away. It seems that the Meteor then collided with the drogue spreader bar, which caused damage to the windscreen, hood and canopy. The same impact may have rendered the pilot unconcious due to head injuries. That would also explain why the aircraft then began to fly erractically, before going out of control and diving into the North Sea, 15 miles east of Acklington, Northumberland. The pilot was killed - although due to the nature of the accident, it is not possible to state for certain if he was killed by the collision with the target drogue spreader bar, or by the impact of the Meteor into the sea.

Crew of Meteor WK886:
Squadron Leader Douglas George FORD, RAF (pilot, aged 30) - kiled in service 4/11/1953

1. Halley, James (1999) Broken Wings – Post-War Royal Air Force Accidents Tunbridge Wells: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd. p.152 ISBN 0-85130-290-4.
2. Last Take-off: A Record of RAF Aircraft Losses 1950 to 1953 by Colin Cummings p 425
3. Royal Air Force Aircraft WA100-WZ999 (James J Halley, Air Britain, 1983)
4. 245 Squadron ORB (Operations Record Book)(Air Ministry Form AM/F.540) for the period 1/1/1951 to 31/12/1955: National Archives (PRO Kew) File AIR AIR 27/2670/5 at https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/D8426886
5. http://www.ukserials.com/results.php?serial=WK
6. https://www.nelsam.org.uk/NEAR/Losses/Losses-PostWWII.htm

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
19-Jun-2008 12:00	JINX	Added
18-Jan-2012 02:31	Nepa	Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Phase, Source]
29-May-2013 14:02	Nepa	Updated [Operator]
22-May-2021 16:39	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Time, Aircraft type, Phase, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative]