Battle L5039 at Catfoss airfield.
On 20th September 1940 the brakes of this aircraft failed and it collided with the auxiliary fire tender while it was being taxied to a hangar at Catfoss airfield.
There were no casualties and the aircraft was only slightly damaged.
Pilot - Sgt James Findlay Douglas RAFVR (741236).
James Douglas had gained his Wings in February 1940 at Prestwick. Only three days prior to this accident he was
pilot of Battle L5715 which he ditched off Hornsea after engine failure. It was some years before he received his commission
on 21st January 1945 to the rank of P/O on probation (emergency) before rising to F/O (war subs) on 21st July 1945. In January
1948 he transferred back to the RAFVR with the rank of F/O. He relinquished his Commission on 1st January 1953.
Battle L5039 was built to contract 540408/36 by the Austin Motor Co. Ltd. at Longbridge and delivered to 6 MU
at Brize Norton on 12th April 1939. It remained in storage for some considerable time before being taken on charge
by the Station Flight at Finningley on 11th January 1940 where it was to be used for Target Towing duties. On 25th
January 1940 it transferred to the Station Flight at Waddington for similar duties. On 14th February 1940 the target
towing duties were transferred to Driffield and No.5 Group Target Towing
Flight (TTF) formed there. It sustained Cat.M/FA damage at Speke when the brakes failed and it ran into a hanger
on 21st June 1940. It was repaired on site at Speke and returned to the unit later the same month. Exactly the
same happened at Catfoss in the incident recorded above on 20th September 1940 and Cat.M/FA was recorded.
Again it was repaired on site and returned to the unit. On 25th October 1940 it transferred to No.4 Group
TTF at Driffield but on 7th Novemner 1941 it was sent to Western Airways Ltd. at Weston Super-Mare for a
major servicing. It may have been the aircraft damaged there on 22nd October 1941 but the unit records nor the history confirm that. On 14th May 1942 it was taken on charge by 38 MU at Llandow, an aircraft storage unit. On
11th October 1942 it was flown to 22 MU at Silloth for storage. On 31st December 1942 it was flown back
to 38 MU at Llandow and went into store there again. It was later dismantled on site there and transported
to 78 MU at Bynea on 30th November 1944. 78 MU was an Aircraft Salvage Centre based at the Pencoed Tinplate
Works, Bynea, Llanelly, South Wales, the aircraft was broken up and "returned to produce" and struck off charge on 4th December 1944.