Meteor WE933 near Rowntrees factory, York.

The pilot of this aircraft was undertaking a training flight over the York area on Sunday the 6th of May 1951 when problems were encountered. The aircraft dived into the ground from about 15,000 feet at full power and hit the ground vertically. The aircraft crashed beside the York to Hull railway line. A huge crater was made after the aircraft disappeared into the ground and exploded, the pilot had no chance, he was killed instantly. It was suggested that anoxia may have caused the pilot to black out and then the aircraft dived into the ground but this was never proven because the aircraft was completely destroyed. The railway line was damaged by the blast and a 10mph speed restriction was placed on the stretch until the line could be repaired.

Pilot - Sgt Kenneth J Hodgson RAF (577966), aged 26, of Manchester. Buried Queenstown Cemetery, Blackpool, Lancashire.

A large crater which I was led to believe was the crash site next to the York to Scarborough line is infact the remains of a partly filled-in bomb crater. I show two photographs of this crater in this section

Since creating this webpage I have been contacted by a number of people who heard the aircraft before it crashed, by all accounts it was screaming in the descent. Former colleague Mr Derek Cooper was one of these people and although he did not see the aircraft strike he heard it in the dive from some distance away. I thank Derek for the additional information he has been able to provide this account.