Whitley P5049 near "Finningley" airfield,

Exactly what happened in respect of this incident is not 100 percent certain. Nothing currently fits as it should with original source documents agreeing with each other. What I believe happened may not be correct. The 77 Squadron records do not exactly give the full picture. An AM Form 1180 sourced at the RAF Museum states that on 3rd September 1940 Whitley P5049 of 77 Squadron was undertaking an operational flight when, owing to engine trouble the pilot force landed it with the wheels down, on rough ground, some three miles from Finningley at 09.30hrs and the pilot was P/O Brownlie.

In itself this could make sense as simply being an aircraft returning from an operational sortie so landed because of an engine problem. When this is checked with the 77 Squadron records nothing agrees. Brownlie is listed as flying Whitley P4989 on the night of 2nd / 3rd September 1940. He took off from Linton on Ouse at 22.55hrs and they landed at 05.00hrs. The squadron record do not state where the landing was made. It does state that five 77 Squadron aircraft landed at Honington, these five aircraft can be guessed as their landing times are much earlier than the others who returned to Linton on Ouse. What I believe was the case is that Brownlie was one of those who landed at Honington, refuelled and then made the flight north back towards Linton on Ouse. Engine trouble then caused them to make a forced landing near Finningley at 09.30hrs and it sustained Cat.Rb damage. The problem is P5049 is not listed as being flown operationally at all on this date. The squadron records then list it as being flown operationally on 8th September 1940, this would appear to be too short period of time to make the aircraft servicable and fly it back to Linton on Ouse.

Pilot - P/O Ian Morgan Rutherford Brownlie RAF (41899).

Whitley P5049 was a replacement aircraft at 77 Squadron for N1501 which was destroyed in the airraid on Driffield on 15th August 1940. P5049 was built to contract 75147/38 by Armstrong Whitworth Ltd. at Baginton and was awaiting collection on 14th June 1940. After a period of MU storage it was taken on charge by 77 Squadron on 28th August 1940 when the unit moved to Linton on Ouse from Driffield and started re-equipping with new Whitley's. On 3rd September 1940 it sustained Cat.R(b)/FB damage in the incident near Finningley. From here it appears to have been dismantled and transported to works factory for repair. On completion of the repair and after a further period of MU storage it was taken on charge in 1941 by 3 (c)OTU at Chivenor but was operated from Kinloss. A short time later 3 (c)OTU's Whitley's were moved to 1 (c)OTU at Silloth but technically it remained on charge with 3 (c)OTU. In July 1941 all 3 (c)OTU Whitley's moved to Cranwell where the unit remained until they ceased operating Whitley's in April 1943, it was then flown into MU storage where it remained until being struck off charge on 28th August 1945.

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