On Saturday, 4th October 1941 the pilot of this 610 Squadron Spitfire undertook a dusk patrol off the Yorkshire Coast with five other pilots and aircraft of the same squadron. All Spitfires took off from Leconfield at 18.05hrs but soon after leaving the ground this aircraft did not keep up with the formation leader and seemed to the formation leader to be flying erratically in hazy conditions around the coastal area. The formation leader later reported that he had radioed an instruction to this pilot to return to base, this instruction appears to have gone ignored and the pilot managed to regain his position in the formation above the haze and undertook the patrol with his leader. Later in the flight Spitfire P8678 again would not keep up with the formation in haze near the coast. The formation leader again radioed to state that the patrol was over and they were to return to base. Exactly where all the aircraft were in relation to Leconfield or Scarborough at this point is not known. As the other squadron aircraft turned and made for Leconfield to land Spitfire P8678 broke formation, entered a shallow dive and gradually lost height. The low cloud and mist was nearly down to ground level in the Scarborough area. Various military personnel attached to the 55th Searchlight Regiment were stationed in the Scalby area at the time and heard it crash. One of their members was on slightly higher ground south of Scalby (probably on Seamer Moor above Raincliffe Woods) and he reported that he could hear the aircraft approach at low level from the south but could not see it owing to the low cloud, he heard it crash near Scalby and saw a flash. Another searchlight regiment member was in his office at Scalby Hall when he heard it approach from the south at low level and saw the aircraft fly close by from the window and loosing height, the aircraft went out of sight and he also heard it crash. Other military personnel attached to the searchlight regiment were in their officers mess at a house near Scalby Church and firstly heard it approach at very low level but again did not see it crash because of their position and trees being in the way. The aircraft had flown into a field just west of Scalby at a shallow angle and disintergrated with part of the wreckage being destroyed by fire. Members of the searchlight regiment were soon on the site but nothing could be done for the pilot, he had been killed instantly. The other five aircraft that undertook the patrol landed safely at Leconfield at 18.55hrs reporting that they had had no difficulty in locating base.
It was thought that the aircraft's radio had failed soon after taking off leading to the pilot not receiving the messages to return to base. The time of the crash is listed in RAF records as being at 18.40hrs while all the search light regiment personnel state 18.29hrs as being the time. Why the pilot kept breaking formation is not known. I have yet to locate the exact place where the aircraft crashed but am fairly certain that it was in one of two fields. One field has now been been built over while the other is still a cultivated field. Both are just outside of the North York Moors National Park boundary. The site must have been visited by local people at the time and as of creating this webpage this remains one of a few accident sites in the Scarborough area I have yet to locate a living witness and would welcome contact from anyone who remembers this incident.
Pilot - P/O Charles Rawdon Keith Fry RAFVR (101570), aged 19. Buried Horley Churchyard, Surrey,
Charles Fry was born in 1923, as a child he appears to have done a lot of travelling, in 1926, 1928 and 1931 there are three entries for him sailing abroad from Avonmouth but he had returned to England to be educated at Hailebury College, Hertford. He received a commission in the RAF to the rank of P/O on probation (emergency) on 9th July 1941. He traind at 57 Operational Training Unit before posting to 610 Squadron. On 2nd October 1941 he landed Spitfire P8148 at Leconfield airfield but ran off the runway and it came to rest with the aircraft tipped on it's nose. He had 54 of his 131 hours total flying time on the Spitfire type when he was killed. His father was living at Salford, near Redhill, Surrey when he was killed. Nothing more is known about him.
His father was a Charles Rawdon Manders Fry born in 1896 who had served in the Sussex Regiment in WW1, he made the same journey as his son in 1926 and also sailed from Bristol in 1923 and Dartmouth in 1930. Someone of the same name also served in the RAF in the Second World War and received a commission on 7th November 1941 (with seniority of 28th July 1941) (110909) who may be the same person though would seem to be too old to have flown when he received his commission. Someone of the same name died in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia in 1958.
Spitfire P8678 was built to contract B981687/39/CB/23(C) by Vickers Armstrong's Ltd at Castle Bromwich and was delivered to the RAF; to 9 MU at Cosford on 31st May 1941. After acceptance it was issued to 452 Squadron at Kenley on 10th July 1941 but quickly moved onto 129 Squadron at Leconfield on 26th August 1941 when this unit begain re-equipping with Mk.IIA's. But on this date 129 Squadron left Leconfield on 28th August 1941 for Westhampnett taking with it only it's Spitfire Mk.Vb's and MkVc's so left it's Mk.IIA aircraft to 610 Squadron who moved into Leconfield from Westhampnett on the same date. As a result of the accident on 4th October 1941 the aircraft suffered Cat.E2/FA damage in the incident detailed above and was written off.