Accident Lockheed Hudson Mk I N7286, Wednesday 24 April 1940
ASN logo
 
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. You can contribute by submitting additional or updated information.

Date:Wednesday 24 April 1940
Time:08:05 LT
Type:Silhouette image of generic L14 model; specific model in this crash may look slightly different    
Lockheed Hudson Mk I
Owner/operator:220 Sqn RAF
Registration: N7286
MSN: NR-Z
Fatalities:Fatalities: 4 / Occupants: 4
Other fatalities:0
Aircraft damage: Destroyed
Location:North Sea, at Grid Reference MBRU 3452, southwest of Stavanger -   Norway
Phase: Combat
Nature:Military
Departure airport:RAF Leuchars, Fife
Destination airport:RAF Leuchars, Fife
Narrative:
Lockheed Hudson Mk I N7286 (NR-Z) of 220 Squadron: Lost on combat operations 24 April 1940. Took off from Leuchars at 04:32 hrs. Escorted three French destroyers until 07:46 hrs when in position MBRU 3452 at 2800 feet, sighted two Bf109's half a mile to starboard diving at 3,000 feet from the sun. The Hudson was attacked by the second Bf109 and was seen to dive to sea level with black smoke issuing from an engine, followed by the enemy aircraft, and claimed as shot down at 08:05 hrs by Ltn Demes and Ofw Arnoldy of 4./JG77.

Crew of Hudson N7286:
Pilot Officer Murray Charles Petrie, RAF 40425 (New Zealand), 220 Sqn, age 21, 24/04/1940, missing.
Pilot Officer Ronald Owen Lawry, RAF 41301 (New Zealand), 220 Sqn, age 20, 24/04/1940, missing.
Aircraftman 1st Class Kenneth Cyrus Maddocks, RAF 624355, 220 Sqn, age 19, 24/04/1940, missing (Served under an alias as "Kenneth C. Merrick").
Leading Aircraftman Percy Wilson, RAF 514613, 220 Sqn, age unknown, 24/04/1940, missing.
R.I.P.

Grid Reference MBRU 3452, according to the claims by the pilots of the Bf 109s that shot down Hudson N7285 was over the North Sea, southwest of Stavanger, Norway. As no trace of the Hudson or its crew was ever found, they are all commemorated on the Runnymede Memorial.

Sources:

1. Royal Air Force Aircraft L1000-N9999 (James J Halley, Air Britain)
2. National Archives (PRO Kew) File AIR 81/169: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C14141970
3. Ross McNeill, 'Royal Air Force Coastal Command Losses: Aircraft and Crew Losses 1939-1941 v. 1', Midland Publishing, 2003 p.30
4. http://www.epibreren.com/ww2/raf/220_squadron.html#2404
5. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/1804252/petrie,-murray-charles/
6. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/1803162/lawry,-ronald-owen/
7. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/1079792/maddocks,-kenneth-cyrus/
8. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/1531854/wilson,-percy/

Revision history:

Date/timeContributorUpdates
10-Jun-2019 21:17 Dr. John Smith Added
11-Jun-2019 05:50 stehlik49 Updated [Operator, ]
24-Mar-2021 09:55 valmy Updated [Date, ]
11-Oct-2023 19:20 angels one five Updated
19-May-2024 04:25 angels one five Updated [Narrative, ]
07-Feb-2025 08:01 angels one five Updated [Narrative, ]

Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description

The Aviation Safety Network is an exclusive service provided by:
Quick Links:

CONNECT WITH US: FSF on social media FSF Facebook FSF Twitter FSF Youtube FSF LinkedIn FSF Instagram

©2025 Flight Safety Foundation

1920 Ballenger Av, 4th Fl.
Alexandria, Virginia 22314
www.FlightSafety.org