Halifax L9524 at Linton on Ouse airfield.
On the night of 22nd / 23rd October 1941 the crew of this 35 Squadron aircraft undertook an operational flight to bomb Mannheim and took off from Linton on Ouse at 18.55hrs. They made two runs on what they believed to have been the target area at 21.34hrs and again four minutes later through thick cloud. On return to base the starboard undercarriage leg collapsed. The time is given as 01.15hrs in the squadron records and then 01.50hrs on the AM Form 1180 (I am not sure which is correct). Two days prior to this incident this aircraft had passed an inspection for damage it was suggested that a hair-line fracture of part of the undercarriage could have gone un-noticed in the starboard wheel arch that could not been seen. It had previously been force-landed in a field in Norfolk a few days before that and flown out where this damage must have occurred.
Pilot - P/O David Scott Shearman Wilkerson RAFVR (62281).
Observer - Sgt Ian Hewitt RAFVR (963517).
Wireless Operator / Air Gunner - Sgt David Lionel Perry RAFVR (908781).
Flight Engineer - Sgt Donald Harrington Craig RAFVR (804138).
Wireless Operator / Air Gunner - P/O Francis Montague Davis RAF (81395).
Air Gunner - Sgt George Barry RAFVR (1115909).
Second Pilot - Sgt John Stanley Gearing RAFVR (1167730).
David Wilkerson's life is well documented on "www.578squadron.rod.uk" and this website mentions the above incident in passing
I have yet to further research it but have included the basic webpage for the time being and will update it in due course. David Wilkerson
was born in London in 1917 and enlisted into the RAFVR in 1940. He received his commission to the rank of P/O on (a currently) unknown date.
He was posted to 58 Squadron in early 1941 and posted to 35 Squadron a few months later but was posted back to 58 Squadron while 35 Squadron
sorted out some problems with their new Halifaxes. He returned to 35 Squadron in September 1941. He was promoted to F/O (war subs) on 29th
January 1942 (with seniority of 27th November 1941). For service with 35 Squadron he was awarded the DFC, Gazetted on 13th March 1942. The
citation for his DFC reads.."As a pilot, and captain of aircraft, this officer has shown outstanding ability and keenness and he has
succeeded in reaching and bombing his objectives with unfailing regularity and success. Flying Officer Wilkerson has attacked a wide range
of enemy targets, including Berlin, Nuremburg, Kiel and Essen, besides other industrial centres and dockyard towns. He took part in 2 daylight
raids on the enemy warships at Brest, and in spite of fierce opposition, carried out his attacks with the utmost skill and determination. Flying
Officer Wilkerson has proved himself to be a courageous captain." He was promoted to F/Lt (war subs) on 5th September 1942 and to S/Ldr on 20th July 1943. He later served with 578 Squadron and on 23rd May 1943 the London Gazette printed notification that he was awarded the DSO for service with 578 Squadron, the citation reads.. "This officer has
completed many sorties on his second tour of operations. He has displayed high powers of leadership, great skill and determination, qualities
which have earned him much success. He is a devoted and zealous squadron commander, whose great drive and tactical ability have contributed in
a large measure to the high standard of operational efficiency of the squadron." He was killed on 16th September 1944 when Martin Baltimore NG689 crashed near West Felton, Shropshire while he was serving with the Empire CFS and flying to Rednal airfield to attend a meeting. Both he and Major James Wilfred Cross SAAF were killed. W/Co Wilkerson was twenty seven years old and is buried in Selby Cemetery, North Yorkshire. A memorial at the crash commemorates his loss and by a bronze bust in Burn Village. On 15th May 1945 the London Gazette printed notification that he had been awarded the U.S. Silver Silver.
Sgt Pennell had only just survived baling out of Halifax L9579 a few days prior to this incident.
Perry and Hewitt were probably two of the crew of Halifax W1048 that crash landed on the ice of a fjord in Norway in April 1942. The aircraft
was salvaged in 1973 and is now on display at the RAF Museum at Hendon.
P/O Davis was posted to 35 Squadron from 19 OTU on 28th July 1941. He left to undertake an attachment with the Air Ministry on 3rd December 1941. On 9th May 1942 he was flying in 10 Squadron Halifax W7674 when the aircraft failed to return from Ops to Warnemunde. He is buried in Berlin War Cemetery.
Sgt Gearing was posted from 10 OTU to 35 Squadron on 13th September 1941 but was soon posted to 58 Squadron. He was killed on 30th November 1941 flying in Whitley Z6575 on Ops to Hamburg. He is buried in Hamburg War Cemetery,
Halifax L9524 was built to contract 692649/37 by Handley Page Ltd. at Radlett and was awaiting collection on 21st April 1941. The aircraft was all allocated to 35 Squadron five days later but was not taken on charge by them until 26th May 1941 at Linton on Ouse. As a result of battle damage sustained on 24th July 1941 on Ops to La Pallice the crew landed at St.Eval but with various members of the crew having sustained injuries, some fatal. Cat.A(c)/FB damage was the damage assessment there and it was repaired on site at St.Eval by 12th September 1941. On this date it was returned to 35 Squadron at Linton on Ouse. On 18th September 1941 it was slightly damage to Cat.A/FA degree when it overshot on landing at Linton on Ouse. It was repaired on site and returned to 35 Squadron use. On 10th October 1941 the aircraft was being flown on Ops to Essen when it received minor flak damage to the hydaulic system which caused a main wheel to drop and lock down and also the bomb doors to remain open. The pilot was able to fly the aircraft back to Norfolk and made a good wheels-down landing in a field near Long Stratton, Norfolk. Minor Cat.Ac/FB resulted despite the aircraft apparently running through two field boundaries, no obvious damage to the undercarriage legs resulted. The aircraft was made servicable on site and a couple of days later F/Lt Leonard Cheshire and a scratch crew comprising of a flight engineer and a navigator were flown into Coltishall, driven to the site and they then flew the aircraft out. The aircraft had been stripped of all excess weight and lightly fuelled. They flew it back to Linton on Ouse where further repairs were complete by 20th October 1941. Two days later it resumed operational use but sustained a collapsed starboard main undercarriage leg when one of the castings broke on landing. Cat.A(c)/FB damage again resulted after assessment on 23rd October 1941, it was repaired on site and returned to 35 Squadron on 21st January 1942. On 14th February 1942 it was transferred to 10 Squadron at Leeming but appears to have been used by the 10 Conversion Flight that operated from Leeming. On 1st April 1942 it was inspected for unspecified damaged that required a repair on site to be carried out. Cat.Ac/FA damage was logged on the aircraft's AM Form 78 on 3rd April 1942 that points to the damage being as result of a flying accident. There is also an AM Form 1180 dated 3rd April 1942 but it has been left blank. On 23rd April 1942 the aircraft was returned to 10 Conversion Flight at Leeming. The aircraft was flown to Handley Page Ltd. for a major inspection on 4th May 1942 and it was awaiting collection on 19th July 1942. The aircraft was returned to 10 Conversion Flight use at Leeming but the date it arrived back is not known. On 26th August 1942 it moved to Melbourne with the unit. On 12th October 1942 the aircraft was transferred to 1659 Heavy Conversion Unit at Leeming but was operated from 13th October 1942 under the guise of 408 Conversion Flight (which was part of 1659 H.C.U.). The aircraft was converted into Ground Instructional Airframe 3489M by the end of 1942. Nothing more of the aircraft is known after this.