ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 268129
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| Date: | Friday 26 September 1941 |
| Time: | 16:20 |
| Type: | Bristol Beaufort Mk I |
| Owner/operator: | 217 Sqn RAF |
| Registration: | W6483 |
| MSN: | |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 4 / Occupants: 4 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Tregonning Hill, near Ashton, Cornwall, England -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | RAF St Eval |
| RAF St Eval |
While on patrol at 1022 hrs on the 26th September 1941, a Hudson spotter plane sighted a merchant vessel about 35 miles south-west of Belle Isle in the Bay of Biscay. Three Beaufort of 217 Squadron Coastal Command were dispatched from RAF St Eval at 1150 hrs to attack what was believed to be an enemy vessel. Two of the bombers were unable to find the vessel, the third bomber saw it but didn’t attack. Returning to base they broke formation. One plane landed at RAF Chivenor and another at St Eval. The third plane, the Beaufort I W6483 MW-A failed to return. It had crashed at 1620 hrs in bad visibility on the edge of the County Quarry on Tregonning Hill near Ashton. The machine was completely burnt-out and the four occupants killed. The crash was heard in a number of the villages around, for example the young Denys Arthur Bryant in the village of Breage.
Crew (all killed):
Pilot Officer James Richards Harrison 89822 (pilot) age 24
Pilot Officer Paul Francis Opperman 100561 (observer) age 19
Sgt Harold Leslie Carter 11622321 (wireless operator/air gunner) age 25
Sgt Dennis Albert Ryder 1255613 (wireless operator/air gunner) age 21.
A memorial on which the names of the crew are engraved was placed by the Balwest Heritage Society at the crash site which is in thick undergrowth right on the edge of the old quarry. It took 3 visits to find it as it teters at the edge of a considerable drop!
Sources:
http://www.germoeparishcouncil.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/tregonning-hill.pdf
http://www.rafdavidstowmoor.com/clog41.html
http://www.doverwarmemorialproject.org.uk/Casualties/WWIInot/SurnamesH.htm
https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ww2peopleswar/stories/51/a6084551.shtml
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tregonning_Hill
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=he&lat=50.118400&lon=-5.355100&z=15&m=w
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 27-Sep-2021 14:11 | Laurent Rizzotti | Added |
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