Date:	Monday 17 November 1952
Time:	day
Type:	Avro Anson C Mk 19
Owner/operator:	FTC CF RAF
Registration:	TX197
MSN:
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 3 / Occupants: 3
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	Sandford Farm, 1 mile NE of Woodley, near Reading, Berkshire -   United Kingdom
Phase:	Take off
Nature:	Military
Departure airport:	RAF Woodley, Reading, Berkshire
Destination airport:
Confidence Rating:	Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources

Narrative:
Avro Anson C.19 TX197 of the FTC CF (Flying Training Command Communications Flight), RAF: Written off (destroyed) 17 November 1952 when crashed at Sandford Farm, 1 mile North East of Woodley, near Reading, Berkshire.

At 150 feet after a normal take off, the aircraft banked to starboard. The bank increased sharply and the aircraft flicked onto its back and dived inverted into the ground. It ended up erect and on fire. It seems probable that the aircraft suffered engine failure shortly after take off. Lost power on takeoff, stalled and dived into ground inverted: All three persons on board were killed:

Those killed were:
Flight Lieutenant (120868) John Ackland Richards, RAF. (pilot aged 31)
Flying Officer (59500) Alistair Bruce Struthers, RAF (Navigator, aged 31)
Cadet John William Hancock (Passenger, ATC Cadet, aged 15)

All three were buried side by side in Woodley, Berkshire, church graveyard.

1. Halley, James (1999) Broken Wings – Post-War Royal Air Force Accidents. Tunbridge Wells: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd. p.137 ISBN 0-85130-290-4.
2. Last Take Off; A Catalogue of RAF Aircraft Losses 1950 to 1953 by Colin Cummings p.309
3. The Anson File (Ray Sturtivant, Air Britain, 1988 p 135)
4. National Archives (PRO Kew) File BT233/124: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C424245
5. National Archives (PRO Kew) File AVIA 5/32/S2604: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C6578450
6. https://www.pprune.org/aviation-history-nostalgia/212072-trying-trace.html
7. http://www.rafcommands.com/forum/showthread.php?4901-F-L.-Richards-F-O-Struthers.-17-Nov-1951
8. https://www.baaa-acro.com/crash/crash-avro-652-anson-c19-woodley-3-killed
9. http://ww2talk.com/index.php?threads/raf-graves-info-on-deaths-pls.14644/

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
27-Sep-2008 01:00	ASN archive	Added
15-Apr-2012 05:51	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Location, Phase, Nature, Departure airport, Source, Narrative]
06-May-2013 14:36	Nepa	Updated [Operator, Narrative]
16-Jan-2016 20:33	JIXN	Updated [Aircraft type, Operator]
24-Dec-2019 20:40	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Time, Operator, Location, Departure airport, Source, Narrative]
24-Dec-2019 20:42	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Departure airport, Source]
24-Dec-2019 20:42	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Narrative]
25-Dec-2019 11:56	stehlik49	Updated [Operator, Operator]
29-Mar-2021 21:33	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Departure airport, Narrative]
29-Mar-2021 21:34	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Source]