On 21st November 1916 this RNAS Flying School aeroplane crashed on landing at Redcar damaging the fuselage.
Pilot - Probationary F/O Melvin Henderson Rattray RNAS.
Melvin Rattray was born at Islington, London on 27th February 1897. He was granted a temporary commission in the RNVR as Sub-Lt on 4th June 1915. His service file appears to state he was serving at Malta when he was diagnosed as being sick and possibly while seconded to 12 Squadron, Royal Artillery Armoured Car Division. In December 1915 he was sent back to England and admitted to hospital with paratyphoid. In March 1916 he was admitted to hospital with enteric fever but was discharged as fit a day later. He was posted to the Talbot Works then to Barrow during April 1916. His appointment in the RNVR was terminated on 16th September 1916 and he was appointed to a commission as Flight Officer in the RNAS on 17th September 1916. He trained at the RNAS Redcar Flying School between 7th October 1916 and 25th November 1916 which saw him awarded a Royal Aero Club aviators' certificate (Cert.No.3984) on 22nd November 1916 at RNAS Redcar. he was then postd to RNAS Cranwell but caught pneumonia in February 1917 that saw him taken off duty for two months. He later served with 9 Naval Squadron and transferred to the RAF on its formation in April 1918. He transferred to the Unemployed List on 30th May 1919. Nothing about his life Post-WW1 is known other than he died in Wilson, Wilson County, North Carolina, USA on 30th March 1974.
Curtiss JN-3 8402 was built by Curtiss in Toronto, Canada and was shipped to UK and following delivery to AAP Hendon on 15th November 1915 it was assembled, tested and accepted. It was immediately transferred to RNAS Flying School Chingford the same day as acceptance. On 20th March 1916 it was sent to the Fairey works for repair and conversion to a JN-3 (improved) and then returned to AAP Hendon on 18th August 1916 where it sat until it was again tested and accepted on 15th October 1916. Soon afterwards on 2nd November 1916 it was transferred to RNAS Redcar to join the Flying School, but was forced to land at Sledmere on route and was damaged on 3rd November 1916. After repair on site it was re-issued to RNAS Scarborough where it arrived on 4th November 1916, the nearest RNAS base, and after a brief stay there was transferred up to Redcar on 4th November 1916 where it finally joined the Flying School. After an accident on 21st November 1916 at Redcar it was repaired and returned to service with Redcar's Flying School before being finally destroyed in a crash on 15th March 1917. It was finally struck off when assessed as beyond economical repair on 3rd April 1917.
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