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| Date: | Monday 26 January 1942 |
| Time: | evening |
| Type: |  Armstrong Whitworth Whitley Mk V |
| Owner/operator: | 51 Sqn RAF |
| Registration: | Z9423 |
| MSN: | MH-S |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 5 / Occupants: 5 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Aircraft missing |
| Location: | North Sea possibly off Schiermonnikoog, Friesland -
 Netherlands
|
| Phase: | Combat |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | RAF Dishforth, North Yorkshire |
Takeoff at 17:12 LT for an operation to Emden, Germany.
The aircraft was shot down by a night fighter of Nachtjagdgeschwader 2.
This was either
Oberleutnant Rudolf Schoenert of the 5. Staffel, who was flying Bf 110 R4+CN from Wittmund airfield, Niedersachsen, Germany - North Sea 50 km north of Schiermonnikoog island (Schlei): 3.200 m / 20:56
or
Oberfeldwebel Heinz Strüning of the Ergänzungsstaffel (based at Gilze-Rijen airfield), who was flying a Ju 88C - no claim location / 22:30.
The five crew members are all missing in action and are commemorated at the Runnymede Memorial.
Crew:-
Pilot : Pilot Officer John Frederick Wright RAFVR 104511 (NCO:1280714 : Commission Gazetted Friday 19 September, 1941) Killed
Crew : Sergeant William John Atwell RAF 845508 Killed
Crew : Sergeant Norman Stead RAFVR 1378264 Killed
Crew : Sergeant Hugh Stainger Brown RNZAF NZ/404527 Killed
Crew : Flight Sergeant Henry Grey-Noble RCAF R/4199 Killed
Sources:
1. Nachtjagd Combat Archive The Early Years part two
2. http://www.aircrewremembered.com/AlliedLossesIncidents/?q=Z9423
3. Rob Davis Bomber Command Losses Database
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 02-Nov-2019 12:56 | TigerTimon | Added |
| 02-Nov-2019 18:37 | Anon. | Updated [Operator, Operator, ] |
| 05-Nov-2019 19:58 | TigerTimon | Updated [Narrative, ] |
| 18-Nov-2019 20:18 | TigerTimon | Updated [Narrative, ] |
| 22-Jun-2022 08:10 | Ron Averes | Updated [Location, ] |
| 26-Jan-2024 07:53 | Rob Davis | Updated [Source, Narrative, ] |
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