Whitley P4958 at Linton on Ouse airfield.
On 2nd December 1940 the crew of this 78 Squadron aircraft were attempting to take off from Linton on Ouse for Ops to Lorient when, at 16.14hrs, it did not get airborne and crashed at the end of the runway due to a lack of power in the engines. The aircraft is believed to have ran across the Aldwark road and caught fire but the crew escaped serious injury. It would be later in the night after the fire had been put out that the bombs on the aircraft were removed.
The damaged bombs were taken to the bomb storage facility at Brafferton when one of them fell while being unloaded and exploded. Five members of ground crew belonging to 92 M.U. died as a result of the explosion and their names are recorded below. One of those named below was Mentioned in Despatches after his death and it is not yet known whether this was for his actions on the night he died or before this date.
Whitley P4958 was built to contract 75147/38 by Armstrong Whitworth Ltd. at Baginton and was awaiting collection on 22nd April 1940. It was delivered to 10 Squadron at Dishforth in the days that followed. Cat.M/FB damage was recorded after a flak incident in May 1940 and after returning to its base of Dishforth it was repaired on site and returned to its unit. On the night of 8th/9th July 1940 10 Squadron were to undertake Ops leaving Dishforth and returning to land at Leeming, it sustained
the Cat.M(c)/FB damage after being badly damaged by flak and although a safe landing was made at Leeming. All the crew sustained minor injuries. After a lengthy repair on site at Leeming it was eventually transferred to 78 Squadron which were operating out of Dishforth by that date. On the night of 2nd December 1940 it sustained damage as detailed above and Cat.W/Burnt damage was recorded and it was deemed beyond repair.
Pilot - Sgt Charles Arthur Smith RAFVR (742847). Injured.
Second Pilot - Sgt T A Brown RAFVR (971162). Injured.
? - Sgt J Barker RAF (751030). Injured.
? - Sgt H J Panter RAF (759254). Injured.
? - P/O John Bertie Thomas Louden RAFVR (84305). Injured.
? - AC2 Frederick Percy Griffiths RAF (1250935), aged 24, of London. Buried Newton on Ouse Churchyard, Yorkshire.
? - AC1 Walter Douglas Victor Aldridge RAFVR (914347), aged 22, of Tottenham. Buried Tottenham Cemetery, Middlesex.
? - AC1 Alfred George Haslett RAF (913403). Buried Heston Churchyard, Middlesex. (He was MiD on 1st January 1941).
? - LAC Alfred John Patterson RAF (292439), aged 40, of North Shields. Buried Tynemouth Cemetery, Northumberland. Died Harrogate Hospital.
? - LAC Robert Smith RAF (625232), aged 20, of Netherton Colliery. Buried Bedlington Cemetery, Northumberland.
? - AC2 Glanville Jones RAFVR (1355645). Seriously injured.
AC2 Frederick Griffiths' grave at Newton on Ouse Churchyard, North Yorkshire.
The pilot, Sgt Charles Smith, soon recovered from his injuries but he was sadly killed on 9th January 1941 flying Whitley T4203.
The aircraft was shot down and crashed in Holland sadly killing him and the other four on board. He is buried in Mook War Cemetery, Holland.
Sgt Brown survived the crash of 405 Squadron Wellington W5490 on 7th July 1941 that killed a number of his then crew.
John Louden became a PoW later in the war.