S.E.5a C8860 at Eastburn aerodrome.
At 07.15hrs on 4th October 1918 this No.21 Training Depot Station aeroplane took off from Eastburn aerodrome (Driffield) but banked steeply. It probably lost flying speed and stalled, then sideslipped into the ground. Upon crashing the aeroplane caught fire and the pilot was killed.
Pilot - 2Lt James Barker RAF, aged 24. Buried Shincliffe (St.Mary) Churchyard, Durham.
James Barker was born on 4th January 1894 at Bearpark, Durham and his father appears to have been a coal miner. This also appears to have been James' job after leaving school and that he worked until he enlisted into the Royal Flying Corps in September 1917. He received a commission on 5th January 1918 and was posted to No.74 Training Squadron on 17th February 1918. He became a member of the RAF when it formed on 1st April 1918. He was later posted to No.21 Training Depot Station but the date is not recorded on his service records. He married Sarah Laverick in Summer 1918.