Halifax DG419 near Fridaythorpe.
During the evening of 5th May 1943 the crew of this 1663 Heavy Conversion Unit aircraft were detailed to undertake a training flight. The training exercise was to include practicing making steep turns and
also flying on three engines to simulate controlling the aircraft after an engine failure, this would also have been combined with feathering and restarting the aircraft's fourth engine before doing the same
with other engines. The minimum safety height for such a training exercise was to fly at no less than 3,000 feet above the ground. The aircraft took off from Rufforth airfield at 19.28hrs and the crew began the
training exercise. Around twenty minutes after taking off this aircraft was flying at around 2,000 feet with the aircraft making an unusual flight of making a series of dives that increased the speed of the aircraft
before then putting the aircraft into a sharp climb, before levelling out and repeating the manoeuvres whilst also banking the aircraft from left to right throughout. The aircraft was flying with the port outer engine
shut down by this stage. Just before 20.00hrs members of a Royal Observer Corps post on the edge of the Yorkshire Wolds saw the aircraft flying at around 1,000 feet when it rolled over and dived into the
ground near Fridaythorpe and exploded. All on board were sadly killed. The crash investigation involved the A.I.B.. It found that the pilot was probably not aware that he should have carried this exercise out at
over 3,000ft in height as he had not signed the order book prior to taking off. The redesign of the Halifax rudder was mentioned, while there is not direct reference to the known rudder over-balance issue with
older Halifaxes, it does seem a possible factor into control being lost. The main cause was put down to pilot inexperience, he had only six hours flying on the Halifax at the time of the crash.
It is not known why there were only six in the aircraft and / or why there was no wireless operator on board. The initial casualty notifications were sent to families of the crew killed and this included the family
of wireless operator / air gunner Sgt N L Springate RAFVR (1382570) receiving notification that he had been killed. This error was later corrected. This therefore seems highly likely that he was this crew's regular
wireless operator but for some reason was not on board for this flight.
Halifax DG419 was built to contract ACFT/637/C4/c by Rootes Securities Ltd. at Speke and was taken on charge by 1663 Heavy Conversion Unit at Rufforth as new on 9th April 1943. As a result of the crash at Fridaythorpe on 5th May 1943 Cat.E2/FA Burnt damage was the assessment and it was struck off charge on 16th May 1943.
Pilot - Sgt Victor Edward Betterton RAFVR (1387742), aged 32. Buried Barmby Moor Churchyard, Yorkshire.
Flight Engineer - Sgt James Chisnall RAFVR (1530103), aged 22. Buried St Helens Cemetery, Lancashire.
Navigator - Sgt Francis Henry Brown RNZAF (NZ.39740), aged 27. Buried Barmby Moor Churchyard, Yorkshire.
Bomb Aimer / Navigator - Sgt Robert Deacon RAFVR (1049243), aged 19. Buried Barnard Castle Church Cemetery, Durham.
Air Gunner - Sgt Harold Rowbottom RAFVR (1094047), aged 20. Buried New Wortley Cemetery, Leeds, Yorkshire.
Air Gunner - Sgt Alfred Warner Oakley RAFVR (757915), aged 22. Cremated Dundee, Angus, Scotland.
Victor Betterton was born in Bristol on 5th December 1910 and was the son of George Edward and Emily Betterton. He married Joyce Kathleen Roberts in London in 1937 and enlisted for RAF service on 4th April 1941.
I would like to thank his cousin, Mr Trevor Betterton, for contacting me and for the information he was kindly able to provide to this account.
A housing development in Pocklington is named after Victor Betterton and has a superb plaque mounted to the front wall.
Robert Deacon was born on 21st May 1923 and enlisted for RAF service on 22nd April 1941. He was buried in his native Barnard Castle. His brother Derrick Deacon was serving in the Royal Corps of Signals in
1943, he was killed three months later on 24th August 1943 and is buried in Baghdad War Cemetery, Iraq.
Harold Rowbottom was born on 3rd February 1923 and enlisted for RAF service on 25th February 1941.
Alfred Warner was born on 6th February 1921 and enlisted for RAF service on 29th August 1939.
James Chisnall was born on 25th August 1920 and enlisted for RAF service on 19th May 1941.
Francis Brown was born on 14th November 1915 and enlisted for RNZAF service on 20th October 1939.
Historians Eric Barton, Ken Reast and Albert Pritchard sought permission from the landowner in October 2006 and located small fragments on the surface through field walking to confirm the crash location.
