Hurricane N2630 near Swine.
The squadron records for 11th December 1940 state that this 213 Squadron aircraft was flown on a sector recce flight. It names Sgt Colin Raymond Glover RAFVR (903503) as the pilot when it began. The incident's AM Form 1180 gives additional information that having landed at Tangmere the squadron's flight commander instructed the pilot (or several pilots) to get back to base as quickly as possible, almost certainly because of a weather front approaching. The pilot (or pilots) appears to have delayed taking off and must have switched aircraft because after two hours at Tangmere they finally headed north. A different pilot was now in N2630. Nearing The Humber darkness began to fall. With the pilot then lost and low on fuel he made a wheels up landing in a field near Swine, north of Sutton, Hull at 17.45hrs.
Pilot - Sgt Ronald Beamish RAF (758103).
Colin Glover later served with 274 Squadron and was killed flying Hurricane Z4606 in Crete on 26th May 1941. He is commemorated on the Alamein Memorial and was twenty seven years old.
Ronald Beamish had already flown with 601 Squadron in the Battle of Britain. He survived the War.
Hurricane N2630 was built to contract 751458/38 by Hawker Aircraft Ltd at either Kingston or Brooklands and was awaiting collection in February 1940. It was taken on charge by 213
Squadron at Wittering in early 1940 but there is no record of this aircraft's service in the Battle of France or the Battle of Britain but by the time it crashed near Hull it
was clearly an old aircraft and must have gone through both periods of extensive use as the Squadron's postings are known. On 17th May 1940 it moved with the unit to Merville,
on 22nd May 1940 to Wittering, on 9th June 1940 to Biggin Hill, on 18th June 1940 to Exeter, on 7th September 1940 to Tangmere and on 29th November 1940 with unit to Leconfield. Following the forced landing near Hull on 11th December 1940 a Cat.R/FA damage assessment was made. It was dismantled and removed for repair in works by Hawker Aircraft Ltd, at Kingston and on completion
of the repair it went into MU storage. On 5th May 1941 it allocated to the Merchant Ship Fighter Unit (MSFU) at Speke but it must not have ever served at sea as the aircraft was
later transferred to 59 OTU at Crosby on Eden later in 1941. On 5th August 1942 this unit moved to Milfield. In 1943 it was transferred to 41 OTU at Hawarden but then later went back into MU storage. It was stuck off charge on 25th May 1944.