Spitfire AA853 near Thornton Dale.
During the afternoon of 15th May 1943 this 302 Squadron aircraft was one of a number flown with the pilots detailed to carry out mock ground attacks on targets of their choice. At times the "targets" included vehicles or vehicle convoys that pilots would notice while flying. 302 Squadron was based at Hutton Cranswick airfield so after taking off this pilot must have headed north. Whether this pilot was using vehicles as targets is not known although it is possible that he was following one along what is now the A170 road. While flying in the Thornton Dale area at 13.30hrs the pilot noticed that his aircraft's engine was vibrating and that it was emitting white smoke, he descended and made a forced landing in a field near Thornton Dale almost certainly with the wheels retracted. The location of where this forced landing occurred is not yet known. As the village falls within the North Yorks Moors National Park, the forced landing may have occurred within the National Park. If time had allowed the pilot to select a field then one of the long and large fields to the south of the village would have made for a much easier landing which would be outside the National Park boundary.
An investigation was made to determine what was wrong with the engine. This found that there was a round of ammunition that had pentetrated the oil tank, this would have seen the oil leak away and eventually the engine would have overheat and fail. The AM Form 1180 does not give additional details but the 302 Squadron records potentially do give clues as to what may have occurred. They state that this aircraft was flown in the morning of 15th May 1943 on an air to air firing exercise, piloted by F/O Jerzy Aleksander Radwanski PAF (P/1735) and that he was towing the target. He landed at Hutton Cranswick airfield at 10.55hrs. It seems highly likely that this was how the damage to the oil tank had occurred. The oil began to slowly leak out and had gone unnoticed prior to the flight in the afternoon. It could not be determined who had fired the shot that damaged AA853.
Pilot - P/O Jan Krajewski PAF (P/2065).
Jan Krajewski was born on 22nd September 1920 at Lwow, Poland (Ukraine). He later emigrated to the USA and died in Santa Monica, California on 6th June 1993.
Spitfire AA853 was built to contract B.19713/39 by Vickers Armstrongs Ltd. at Southampton and was first test flown on 1st October 1941. Six days later it was flown to 30 MU at Sealand and on 13th October 1941 it was taken on charge by 302 Squadron at Harrowbeer. On 1st November 1941 it swung on landing at Harrowbeer and damaged the undercarriage. Cat.Ac/FA damage was the damage assessment and it was repaired on site. On 28th February 1942 it was struck by Spitfire AA854 on take off at Harrowbeer and again Cat.Ac/FA damage resulted which was repaired on site. It was returned to 302 Squadron, who moved to Warmwell on 26th April 1942. On 28th April 1942 the undercarriage collapsed at Warmwell. Cat.Ac/FA damage again resulted and it was repaired on site and returned to the unit. 302 Squadron then moved to Heston on 7th May 1942, Croyden on 30th June 1942, Heston on 7th July 1942, Ipswich on 21st September 1942, Heston on 29th September 1942, and Kirton in Lindsey on 2nd February 1943. On 5th March 1943 a tyre burst and the undercarriage collapsed at Kirton in Lindsey. Again Cat.Ac/FA damage was the damage assessent and it was repaired on site with it then being returned to 302 Squadron use. On 17th April 1943 302 Squadron moved to Hutton Cranswick. On 15th May 1943 it force landed near Thornton Dale and Cat.B/FA damage was the damage assessment. This then saw it transported to L.M.S.Ltd. at Derby for a repair in works (the London Midland and Scottish Railway works). Once servicable it was taken on charge by 501 Squadron at Hawkinge on 9th November 1943. On 31st December 1943 it was transferred to 350 Squadron at Hornchurch. On 11th January 1944 it was transferred to 322 Squadron at Hawkinge. On 10th March 1944 was transferred to 350 Squadron at Hawkinge, 350 Squadron later moved to Peterhead on 13th March 1944 and Friston on 25th April 1944. On 30th April 1944 it collided with Spitfire AR498 whilst escorting Boston’s and was ditched off Tangmere. Cat.E/FA damage was the damage assessment and it was struck off charge.