On 24th September 1942 this aircraft dived into the ground during a training flight near the small village of Ryther and sadly the pilot was killed. The Australian National Archives hold the pilot's service records and these documents yield a letter from the RAAF to his mother explaining the events of the accident. It states that the pilot was involved in a non-operational training flight and had taken off at 15.00hrs, at the time of the crash he was carrying out a series of steep turns and practicing recovering from the aircraft stalling. The aircraft was seen in a dive from about 2,000 feet from which the pilot managed to pull out of the dive at low altitude but entered a second dive from which there was no height left to recover the aircraft again before it struck the ground at 15.30hrs. Although not stated it seems likely that the aircraft was using it's satellite airfield of Acaster Malbis rather than the parent airfield of Leconfield. His body was taken back to the parent airfield for burial in the parish churchyard there on 28th September 1942.
Pilot - Sgt Kenneth Francis Cadd RAAF (415114), aged 21, of Byford, Western Australia. Buried Leconfield Churchyard, Yorkshire.
Oxford X7073 was built to contract B.66827/40 by Airspeed Ltd. at Christchurch and was awaiting collection in November 1941. The aircraft was taken on charge by 15 S.F.T.S. at Kidlington on 30th November 1941 and then moved to Leconfield with the unit early in 1942. On 1st March 1942 15 S.F.T.S. was re-designated 15 (P)A.F.U. As a result of the crash at Ryther on 24th September 1942 Cat.E2/FA damage was the result of the damage assessment and it was written off.
Kenneth Cadd was born on 25th July 1921 in Kellerberrin, Western Australia, he enlisted in Perth on 21st July 1941 and was working as a postal clerk at the time. After initial training he gained his Wings in April 1942. He arrived in the UK on 25th August 1942 and was posted to 15 (P)AFU on 11th September 1942 just two weeks before his death in the accident at Ryther. At the time of his death he had flown eleven hours in the Oxford type.