On the night of 11th / 12th December 1942 the crew of this 102 Squadron aircraft were to undertake an operational flight to bomb Turin, Italy. They took off from Pocklington at 16.54hrs to begin the mammoth flight. 82 aircraft were dispatched from across Bomber Command but more than half turned back before crossing the Alps due to severe icing conditions effecting flying. On their return to the UK thick cloud was present over their home airfield of Pocklington so they were ordered to divert further north to try and land at Middleton St.George where the visibility was better. Low cloud was present between the Yorkshire coast and Middleton St.George which would appear to have resulted in the crew getting slightly lost and flying over high ground. Probably believing that they were over much lower ground the aircraft descended through the cloud over the Moors so that the crew could check position, with the aircraft being over high ground there was not enough height available to safely do this and the aircraft struck the ground a couple of miles north of Hawnby, near Low Thwaites Farm, killing all on board. The Low Thwaites was occupied by the Kitchin family but who were not at the house at the time although they worked over at Arden. As it crashed the aircraft ploughed its way through a number of fields and dry-stone walls before coming to rest very close to the farmhouse. It also knocked the outside toilet building of the farmhouse down, damaged what was described as a cowhouse and cut a sycamore tree down before coming to rest lined up with the short track down to the farm from the High Thwaites road. A fire broke out which damaged a store house next to the main farm building. The time of the crash is given as being 02.25hrs in the casualty file

The RAF MU took some time to dismantle this aircraft and stayed nearby at Sportsmans Hall, just to the south of Low Thwaites Farm. One of the engines had somehow gone through the cow house building door and left the frame and stonework almost undamaged and when the RAF came to remove it however it was a different story, they simply pulled the small building down to get at it. It's ruins were still visible up until around 2016 but since then the estate have done a lot of work transforming the buildings and immediate land around the farm into a shooting lodge. What were very unkempt ruins have been tidied up to be a smart shooting lodge.

Halifax W7933 was built to contract B73328/40 by Handley Page at Radlett. It was taken on charge by 102 Squadron at Pocklington on 25th November 1942. Following the crash near Hawnby on 12th December 1942 the damage was assessed as being Cat.E2 (Burnt) which then saw it being struck off charge on 19th December 1942. It had still managed to clock up just over twenty six total hours flying in it's short life.

Pilot - Sgt Gerald John Morgan RAFVR (1081231), aged 21, of Liverpool. Buried Barmby Moor Churchyard, Yorkshire.

Flight Engineer - Sgt Richard Leslie Lines RAFVR (942146), aged 26, of Wolstanton, Stoke on Trent. Buried Stoke on Trent, Burslem Cemetery.

Navigator / Bomber - Sgt Carl Robert Woolley RAFVR (1575390), aged 33, of Nottingham. Buried Nottingham Southern Cemetery.

Bomb Aimer - Sgt Basil Norris RAFVR (1335250), aged 19, of Wallington, Surrey. Buried Barmby Moor Churchyard, Yorkshire.

Wireless Operator / Air Gunner - Sgt William Harry Casson RAFVR (778385), aged 21, parents of Inyango, Southern Rhodesia (now Nyanga, Zimbabwe). Buried Gosforth Churchyard, Cumbria.

Air Gunner - Sgt John Allen McPhee RCAF (R/92407), aged 27, of Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada. Buried Barmby Moor Churchyard, Yorkshire.

Air Gunner - Sgt Frank Allen RCAF (R/87266), aged 25, parents of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Buried Barmby Moor Churchyard, Yorkshire.

Sgt Morgan (although a poor photograph) and his headstone at Barmby Moor Churchyard. He was born on 28th October 1921 in Liverpool and enlisted for RAF service on 3rd December 1940.

Sgt Woolley and his gravestone at Nottingham Cemetery (my thanks to Mr Tony Glover for this photograph). He was born on 6th September 1909 at Nottingham and enlisted for RAF service on 18th June 1941.

Frank Allen was born on 5th September 1919 at Leney, Saskatchewan, Canada and was the son of James Allen and Muriel Allen. He is listed as living in Pleasantdale, Saskatchewan by the time he enlisted for RCAF service on 5th February 1941 where he was working as an agent for the North Star Oil Company. His parents later lived in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Sgt William Casson and his gravestone. He was born on 24t June 1921 at Whitehaven, Cumberland. He and his parents had lived at Seascale, Cumberland but left England for Salisbury, Rhodesia before the war. He enlisted for RAF service on 11th October 1940. While on leave from the RAF he returned to the area where his grandparents still lived and owned the Scawfell Hotel. His funeral service was held at Seascale with burial at Gosforth Churchyard.

His brother John Casson was also a member of aircrew in the RAFVR and his service is worthy of note here, by May 1944 he was posted to 250 Squadron as a pilot, as F/Sgt he was awarded the Conspicuous Gallantry Medal (Flying) the following month for actions in May 1944 while based at San Angelo, Italy. On 27th May 1944 he was detailed for an armed reconnaissance mission along the Caprino-Arche-Frosinone road. Near Frosinone, over twenty enemy motor transport vehicles were spotted and Red Section, led by Casson, in Kittyhawk FX761, attacked the convoy. He scored four hits on the road and claimed one motor vehicle destroyed when it blew up. The section then attacked in pairs and obtained further hits. The aircraft was fired upon by flak from several ground positions. Casson had made his two runs in the face of severe opposition. In his second attack his Kittyhawk was hit by a shell and he was seriously wounded and his aircraft holed and a tyre punctured. Dispite his injuries Casson flew his aircraft back to base, a distance of fifty miles, while being lifted from his cockpit he finally passed out. He was recommended for the CGM the same day by his Commanding Officer, Major J.R.R. Wells D.F.C., but sadly he succumbed to his wounds. His action came at the height of the Battle for Rome. At the time of his death, John Casson had flown ninety-eight operational flights and had 496 flying hours to his name. The citation for the award reads.. "One morning in May 1944, this airman took part in an attack on mechanical transport on the Alatri-Frosinone Road. Despite intense opposing fire, Flight Sergeant Casson pressed home his attacks with great determination. Whilst making a second, run over the target his aircraft was hit by a shell. Flight Sergeant Casson was badly wounded in the thigh. Although faint through the loss of blood and shock, this valiant pilot flew his damaged aircraft to base. He was unable to operate one rudder-bar owing to his exhausted condition. Nevertheless, he effected a safe landing. As he was lifted from the controls, Flight Sergeant Casson collapsed. This airman displayed courage, fortitude and devotion to duty of the highest order."

John Casson (pictured above) died later the same day on 27th May 1944 of these injuries and is buried in Minturno War Cemetery, Italy, he was twenty one years old. He received a commission to P/O on 14th May 1944 but notification of this was not printed in the London Gazette until after his death on 25th July 1944. He was the first Rhodesian to be awarded the C.G.M. Both William and John Casson's medal sets were sold at auction in 2002.

The other two graves at Barmby Moor churchyard.

John McPhee was born on 27th February 1915 at Brock, Saskatchewan, Canada and was the son of Samuel and Margaret Bain (nee Littlejohn) McPhee. After his mother died in 1936 he appears to have moved to work with his brother at a fruit farm (vinyard?) at Naramata, British Columbia losing touch with his father. He then moved moved to Kelowna, B.C. in 1939 to work in a sawmill. In 1940-41 he studied at the Radio College of Canada probably thinking this would stand him in good stead for RCAF service. He enlisted for RCAF service on 1st March 1941 in Vancouver and after training in Canada he was awarded his air gunners' flying badge on 31st January 1942. He then appears to have begun wireless operator training but did not complete the cuorse and reverted to being a straight air gunner rather than with wireless operator / air gunner status. He married Nancy Gail Pearce on 7th February 1942 at Calgary and was posted to the UK the following month. His first posting to train in the UK was with No.7 A.G.S. on 30th May 1942, he was the posted to 24 OTU on 30th June 1942. While training at 24 OTU he was in Whitley AD697 on 18th August 1942 when there was an unfortunate accident involving a member of groundcrew who walked into a rotating propeller when the aircraft was stationary and being run-up on the ground. Sadly Ac Joseph Mayfield died of his injuries. He completed the training at 24 OTU and was posted to 102 Conversion Flight on 16th September 1942 with posting to 102 Squadron on 30th October 1942.

Basil Norris was born on 5th January 1923 at Wallington, Surrey and enlisted for RAF service on 17th March 1941. In 2007 a new road in Barmby Moor was named Norris Avenue in his honour.

Richard Lines was born on 10th February 1916 at Coventry and enlisted for RAF service on 1st December 1939.

The Halifax crashed through the fields before striking the farmhouse in the centre on the horizon.

The ruined farm house of Low Thwaites nearby. I understand that the wall in the foreground was demolished by the aircraft.

The farm as seen from the opposite side. The Halifax ploughed through the building to the right of the photo, badly damaged the tree in the centre and ended up near the foreground to the photo. It also took the roof of the far end of the farmhouse.

The area of the crash as viewed from the north, the farm is centre right. I have visited the area a number of times but have yet to locate anything "aircraft related" on the ground. Low Thwaites was last occupied full time in either 1947 or 1948, since then it has seen better days. It was finally deserted in the late 1950s but still remains a local land mark and can be seen for miles around due to it's elevated position. The main farm building was partially renovated in summer 2004 for use by shooting parties on the moor but with a tin roof (which subsequently blew off making the building in a worse state than before it was fitted). A more recent renovation has turned the farm into a smart shooting lodge.

Part of a navigation instrument found at the crash site some years ago by Mr John Severs, this item was passed to me in 2005 and is in my posession until I trace the navigator's family. A complete example is shown below.

Back to 1942 monthly table.

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