Date:	Thursday 21 September 1944
Time:	day
Type:	Airspeed Oxford Mk I
Owner/operator:	3 (P) AFU RAF
Registration:	DF516
MSN:
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2
Other fatalities:	0
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	Flisteridge Wood, Laurel Farm, Hankerton, Wiltshire, England -   United Kingdom
Phase:	En route
Nature:	Military
Departure airport:	RAF South Cerney, Gloucestershire
Destination airport:

Narrative:
Airspeed Oxford DF516: (3 Pilots Advance Flying Unit): Written off (destroyed) 21 September 1944* when crashed at Flisteridge Wood, Laurel Farm, Hankerton, Wiltshire. During flying training, carrying out flying instructional training on stalling, steep turns, and low flying (although the crew were instructed not to fly below 250 feet) the Oxford collided with a tree which was 20 feet higher than the others and located on a ridge in the woods. Both crew were killed when the Oxford flipped on its back and hit the ground.
Crew:
F/O Robert James Newton (J/36366) pilot/Instructor RCAF - killed
F/Sgt Ronald Jack Brown (Aus.437389) pupil pilot U/T) RAAF - killed

*Note that the incident took place on 21 September 1944 - as confirmed by the CWGC (Commonwealth War Graves Commission) records. However, due to an administrative error, the aircraft record card for Oxford DF516 is incorrectly dated as "21 September 1945" (one year later, to the day). This error had been replicated by several published sources.

1. Halley, James (1999). Broken Wings – Post-War Royal Air Force Accidents. Tunbridge Wells: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd. p.9. ISBN 0-85130-290-4.
2. The Oxford, Consul & Envoy file (John F Hamblin, Air Britain, 2001)
3. Royal Air Force Aircraft DA100-DZ999 (James J Halley, Air Britain, 1987 p 21)
4. http://aircrewremembered.com/newman-robert-james.html
5. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2667931/newman,-robert-james/
6. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2691542/brown,-ronald-jack/
7. http://www.planetrace.co.uk/1940-1949_28.html

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
24-Oct-2019 22:35	Dr. John Smith	Added
24-Oct-2019 22:44	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Narrative, ]
24-Oct-2019 22:59	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Narrative, ]
28-Oct-2019 09:32	Anon.	Updated [Operator, Operator, ]
31-May-2024 11:08	Nepa	Updated [Location, Departure airport, Narrative, Operator, ]