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| Date: | Thursday 8 June 1939 |
| Time: | |
| Type: |  Supermarine Spitfire Mk I |
| Owner/operator: | 41 Sqn RAF |
| Registration: | K9837 |
| MSN: | 50 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | RAF Catterick, North Yorkshire, England -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | Landing |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | RAF Catterick, North Yorkshire |
| RAF Catterick, North Yorkshire |
Spitfire K9837: (c/n 50 - 50th production Spitfire)
05/01/39: Delivered to 41 Squadron at RAF Catterick, North Yorkshire
08/06/39: Written off in a wheels-up landing at RAF Catterick, North Yorkshire, after a night-flying exercise. According to the Air Accident Card, the pilot F/O (37715) H. Peter Blatchford forgot to lower undercarriage on approach: "landed with u/c retracted. Forgot to lower u/c".
The Form states that the station claxon had been switched off and the R/T was not working, so the pilot could not be warned of the fact his undercarriage was not lowered as he came in to land. The suggestion was therefore made by the investigating officer that some form of warning device should be fitted to the aircraft. The accident card notes that both the Squadron and Station Commanders concurred, feeling that such a modification was "essential before this type of accident will be eliminated." Additionally, a suggestion was made that the undercarriage might be linked to the flaps, instead of the pilot having to pump the undercarriage down with a lever.
As a result, the investigating officer found the “Pilot to blame but [that there were] mitigating circ[umstance]s.”
17/08/39: Struck Off Charge
17/08/39: Reassigned as ground instructional airframe: to 1628M at 2AAS, RAF Weeton
31/05/44: "Reduced to produce" (scrapped)
Sources:
1. Royal Air Force Aircraft K1000-K9999 (James J. Halley, Air Britain,1976 page 79)
2. http://www.airhistory.org.uk/spitfire/p001.html
3. http://www.rafcommands.com/forum/showthread.php?12516-41-Sq-Spitfire-forced-landing-before-WW2-N.Yorkshire
4. http://allspitfirepilots.org/aircraft/K9837
5. AM Form 1180 Air Accident Card, RAF Museum
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 05-Jan-2011 17:05 | angels one five | Added |
| 25-Dec-2011 04:24 | Nepa | Updated [Aircraft type, Registration, Operator, Location, Narrative, ] |
| 10-Jan-2012 15:17 | angels one five | Updated [Aircraft type, Cn, Operator, Location, Destination airport, ] |
| 15-Jan-2012 01:59 | Nepa | Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Location, Nature, Destination airport, ] |
| 22-Jan-2012 19:14 | angels one five | Updated [Aircraft type, Narrative, ] |
| 05-May-2012 11:36 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Aircraft type, Registration, Cn, Operator, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Other fatalities, Location, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, ] |
| 30-May-2012 00:19 | Nepa | Updated [Operator, Location, ] |
| 04-Nov-2012 03:49 | angels one five | Updated [Aircraft type, Source, Narrative, ] |
| 17-Jan-2014 05:44 | angels one five | Updated [Operator, Nature, Narrative, ] |
| 06-Jun-2015 20:06 | Gun | Updated [Operator, Location, Destination airport, ] |
| 18-Dec-2016 02:22 | angels one five | Updated [Location, Narrative, ] |
| 29-Mar-2018 16:15 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Location, Nature, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, ] |
| 06-Feb-2021 07:02 | angels one five | Updated [Narrative, ] |
| 09-May-2022 07:46 | Steve Brew | Updated [Time, Source, Narrative, ] |
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