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| Date: | Wednesday 8 August 1945 |
| Time: | Mid Day |
| Type: | Miles Martinet TT Mk 1 |
| Owner/operator: | 1 APC RAF |
| Registration: | HP143 |
| MSN: | |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Minor |
| Location: | Hunts Farm, East Cliff, Hunts Bay, Southgate, Glamorgan, -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | RAF Fairwood Common |
| Return. |
Miles M.25 Martinet TT. M.k1 HP143: It's service life included assignments to RAF Colerne, 11 APC and 1 APC (APC = Armament Practice Camp). The aircraft's engine cut and it was forced to land near the East Cliff, at Hunts Bay, Southgate, Glamorgan, on 8th August 1945.
Hunts Bay is located on the south coast of the Gower Peninsula, Wales, between Pwll du and Foxhole to the east of Three Cliffs Bay at approximate co ordinates: 51°33′41″N, 4°04′29″W.
Details:
The aircraft's engine cut out at 700 feet over the sea, and it was forced to land near the East Cliff with minimal damage, on farmland belonging to Hunts Farm, which had no less than THREE aircraft force land here during the war, happily all without loss. This was the last of the three incidents to occur here. The other two, were a Magister T9907, on the 5th of October 1940. The other, a Defiant T3940, on the 29th of January 1942.
Hunts Bay is located on the south coast of the Gower Peninsula between Pwlldu bay and Three Cliffs Bay. It was once a sandy beach, but the sand depth on the beach is diminishing, leaving a rocky cove. The loss of sand has been attributed to sand dredging off Gower.
Crew:
W/O Webber RAFVR. Safe.
Buried:
N/A.
Memorials:
N/A.
Wreckage:
Write ups of this incident state the aircraft was removed or even repaired then flown off. However, Steve Jones’s book ‘Fallen Flyers’ clearly shows a photograph of the three sliding canopies off the Martinet in a garden in Southgate which has been used since the force landing as ‘frost covers’ and has Steves young son standing next to it. If they remain there, it is not known because the book was released in 2005.
Additional Information:
Frederick George Miles was born on 22 March 1903 in Worthing Sussex, the oldest of four sons of Frederick Gaston Miles. He was (along with his brother) were the driving force of the Miles Aircraft Company. Within the long history, one interesting article needs to be said.
During 1943, F.G. Miles was shown a prototype ballpoint pen made by László József Bíró (29 September 1899 – 24 October 1985) by Buenos Aires based chartered accountant Harry G. Martin, and offered to produce them for the Royal Air Force. The ministry was concerned that it would distract from aircraft production but Miles eventually persuaded government officials to let him use 17 unskilled women to produce the Biro pen, which was the world's first commercially successful ballpoint pen. In 1945, Miles and Martin formed The Miles-Martin Pen Co Ltd. with F.G. Miles and Martin each putting up £5,000 capital, with F.G. Miles appointed Chairman of the new company. At the end of the war, the Reading biro factory which would employ 700 people, became the Miles Martin Pen Company and the Biro was sold to the general public. After Miles’ collapse, Martin was to eventually take control of the company and to change its name to the Biro Pen Co.
Frederick George Miles died on 15 August 1976 in Ashurst Steyning, Sussex.
Sources:
1. Halley, J.J, 1989 Royal Air Force Aircraft HA100-HZ999, page 86.
2. https://coflein.gov.uk/en/site/515819/details/miles-martinet-i-hp143
3. http://www.ggat.org.uk/timeline/pdf/Military%20Aircraft%20Crash%20Sites%20in%20Southeast%20Wales.pdf
4. http://www.rafcommands.com/forum/showthread.php?8558-1-Armament-Practice-Camp-Locations
5. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hunts_Bay
Fallen Flyers 2005. By Steve Jones.
www.air-britain.com
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 15-May-2019 21:10 | Dr. John Smith | Added |
| 26-May-2019 07:19 | stehlik49 | Updated [Operator, ] |
| 03-Aug-2025 14:56 | Davies 62 | Updated [Time, Total occupants, Location, Phase, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Damage, Narrative, ] |
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