On the night of 21st / 22nd August 1942 the crew of this 44 Squadron aircraft undertook a night cross-country training exercise over England and southern Scotland. After taking off from Waddington, Lincolnshire the crew were instructed to use turning points of Oxford, the Isle of Man and Edinburgh before returning to base at Waddington. For much of the flight the crew flew in cloud at between five and six thousand feet and despite this, the crew appear to have managed to have flown most of the route having navigated successfully. On the leg between Edinburgh and Waddington the aircraft appears to have drifted too far west and over the Pennine hills however which then caused the crew to loose their position. While descending through cloud over what the crew thought was much lower ground the aircraft clipped high ground (which must have been the northern ridge forming Nidderdale). This caused damage to all four propellers and the aircraft was then crash landed a short distance later on moorland bordering Colsterdale, to the west of Masham, at 03.20hrs. The rear gunner was found to have sustained back, arm and facial injuries. As soon as it was light four members of the crew set out for help in different directions and this resulted in a stretcher party arriving at the site at 09.30hrs. The rear gunner was eventually taken to Catterick Military Hospital while the others were taken to Leeming airfield. The bomb aimer's identity still remains uncertain. In the AIR81 casualty file for the incident he is listed as being both Sgt Pearce (on the AM Form 765c) and also Sgt Crowley (on the P.4 Cas) but with the two names not being mentioned together on the same documents. The name of F/Sgt William James Rose RAFVR (778285) was given in correspondance between 44 Squadron association and historian Eric Barton but unfortunately I cannot locate an actual source document with his name referred. I have not therefore confirmed who was the bomb aimer when this aircraft crashed.
It is also worth pointing out on this webpage the basic story of "Colsterdale Man". In 1997 a gamekeeper found the skeletal remains of a man in the same general area as to where Lancaster L7584 crashed and whom had remained undiscovered for around twenty five years on the moor. Despite police investigations at the time and a later high profile cold case review the identity of the man was never found and he was buried at Harrogate Stonefall Cemetery on 30th December 2005. There is a distant possibility that the man could well be one of the airmen who survived this crash and also the war, who had then returned to the area in the early 1970s. There is however absolutely no proof of this and the man still remained unidentified.
Pilot - P/O Thomas Gerald Hackney RAFVR (80218), of Gwelo, Southern Rhodesia.
Flight Engineer - Sgt Stanley Vear Dorrington RAFVR (777808).
Navigator - Sgt Aubrey Wilson Coley RAFVR (778240), of North End, Bulawayo, Southern Rhodesia.
Bomb Aimer - Sgt Harold Edward Pearce RAF (657115) OR Sgt Michael John Crowley RAFVR (1036177).
Wireless Operator / Air Gunner - P/O William Bernard Cook RAF (80225). Southern Rhodesia.
Air Gunner - Sgt Rufus Isaacs Gruber RAFVR (777670), of Mashaba, Southern Rhodesia.
Air Gunner - Sgt Follett Mead Wesson RAFVR (777703), of King Williams Town, Southern Rhodesia. Injured.
Lancaster L7584 was built to contract B69274/40 by A.V.Roe Ltd. at Woodford and was awaiting collection March 1942. This was the last aircraft of the first batch of production Lancasters. On 18th March 1942 it was taken on charge by 44 Squadron Conversion Flight at Waddington to give training to the parent 44 Squadron aircrews. It was used by the parent 44 Squadron from late-April 1942 coded "-S"; it is listed in their operational records as being flown on Ops on 27th April, 28th April, 19th May, 30th May, 1st June, 5th June, 6th June, 9th June, 25th July, 26th July, 29th July, 31st July, 9th August, 10th August and 17th August 1942. The aircraft's AM Form 78 does not reflect the transfer but does mention that on 13th July 1942 an assessment was made for minor unspecificied damage which resulted a repair on site being carried out, possibly Cat.A/FA damage. The repair was finished on 14th July 1942 and it returned to 44 Squadron but now the transfer to the parent 44 Squadron is stated on the aircraft's AM Form 78. As a result of the accident near Masham on 22nd August 1942 the damaged aircraft was assessed on site and Cat.E2/FA damage was the assessment made. It had completed a total of 173 flying hours from new and was struck off charge on 19th August 1942.
Thomas Hackney was born on 14th January 1919 on Gwelo, Southern Rhodesia. He sailed from Capetown to London in September 1933 on the S/S Umkuzi to study at the Imperial Service College at Windsor. He had flown Hampdens with 44 Squadron in late-1941 before the unit converted to Lancasters. He received a commission on 5th January 1942 to the rank of P/O on probation (emergency). While training with No.44 Conversion Unit on 15th April 1942 he was flying Lancaster L7540 when the aircraft approached a night landing at Waddington too fast and the aircraft overshot receiving minor damage. Both Hackney and Coley were posted to 83 Squadron on 26th October 1942 following service with 44 Squadron. F/O Hackney DFC and F/Sgt Coley together with their new crew were reported missing on 7th November 1942 flying Lancaster R5566. Their aircraft is believed to have crashed in the Mediterranean Sea just off the Italian mainland. Hackney was twenty three years old and F/Sgt Coley was twenty four years old, both men are commemorated on the Runnymede Memorial. Thomas Hackney had been recommended for the DFC prior to his death but this was not Gazetted until after it. He was awarded the DFC for service with 44 Squadron, Gazetted on 20th November 1942, the citation reads.."This officer has participated in numerous sorties, involving attacks on a wide range of enemy targets. He is a skilful pilot and a fine captain whose determined efforts have contributed in a large measure to the many successes obtained. In the recent attack on Genoa, Pilot Officer Hackney attacked his objective successfully and obtained a photograph."
Sgt Rufus Gruber was born on 27th February 1921 in Southern Rhodesia. He was still serving with 44 Squadron and was killed two days after his former skipper while flying in Lancaster W4180 on 9th November 1942, he was twenty one years old and is buried in Hamburg Cemetery, Germany. His older brother Maurice also died on service, serving with 50 Squadron he died on 9th May 1942 and is buried in Svino Churchyard, Denmark.
Follett Mead Wesson was born on 1st April 1915 at Peddie, Cape Province, Southern Rhodesia (South Africa) and was the son of Reuben Thomas and Violet Emily (nee Kingman) Wesson. What happened to him after August 1942 and the end of the war is not known. He appears to have married Evelyn Lucy Doidge in Manchester, England in Summer 1944. Post-WW2 he returned to South Africa because he, his wife Evelyn and three daughters, Vivienne, Caroline and Shirley, later sailed for the UK from Capetown in 1959 on RMS Edinburgh Castle stating that they were to visit the UK for two weeks. At that time Follett was working as a store manager and gave his UK address as being Rhodesia House, The Strand, London. He was later awarded the Rhodesian General Service Medal for service in the British South Africa Police (Reserves) in 1971. Where and when he died is not clear. I would welcome contact from his family or anyone who knew him after the war. His life deserves more of a write-up than just these few words.
Sgt Harold Pearce was awarded the DFM for service with 44 Squadron, Gazetted on 18th May 1943. He then received a commission on 22nd May 1943 and survived the War.
In July 2006 I visited the site after consulting with historian Mr Eric Barton who had located the site in December 2004 through speaking to local gamekeepers. Eric located a few pieces when he visited though I could only find one piece of the aircraft when I visited. Railway sleepers and a enamalled tin mug were also located, these were probably left by the RAF MU team who cleared the site.
