Hurricane V7610 near Barkston Ash.
On the night of 9th / 10th April 1941 this 46 Squadron aircraft was flown on an operational patrol. On the return to the landing circuit of Sherburn in Elmet airfield the aircraft stalled and then crashed near Barkston Ash just before midnight. The pilot was killed in the crash and although a Yorkshire-man, he was not buried under family arrangements in his home town but was buried in the cemetery used by Church Fenton airfield.
Hurricane V7610 was built to contract 62305/39 by The Hawker Aircraft Company Ltd. at Langley and was awaiting collection in November 1940. It was taken on charge by 46 Squadron at North Weald immediately, who then moved to Digby in December 1940 and to Church Fenton on 28th February 1941 and took V7610 with it on both occasions. On 1st March 1941 it moved with the unit to Sherburn in Elmet but on 9th April 1941 it sustained Cat.E2/FA damage as a result of the crash at Barkston Ash that saw it struck off charge.
Pilot - F/Sgt Leonard Hilary Borlase Pearce RAFVR (741920), aged 27, of Harrogate, Yorkshire. Buried Kirkby Wharfe Cemetery, Yorkshire.
Leonard Pearce was born in the Medway district of Kent in 1914. Sgt Pearce joined 32 Squadron in July 1940 and destroyed a Dornier Do17 on 15th August 1940. On
18th August he shot down in Hurricane R4106 after combat over Canterbury and was slightly wounded. This Battle of Britain aircraft was dug up some years ago and
a near-perfect Merlin engine recovered, the engine was displayed in museums in the South of England until the D-Day museum at Shoreham housing it closed and it
was later sold to a shop in Kent and then broken into parts and sold off. In September 1940 he was posted to 249 Squadron and then later to 46 Squadron and was
injured on 13th October 1940 after force landing near Biggin Hill. He had attended Haileybury College, the Imperial Service College, Hertford.
Air historians Albert Pritchard, Eric Barton and Ken Reast located small fragments on the surface at the crash site in August 2002 with permission from the landowner, confirming the crash location. The photograph shown above was taken by Eric Barton and shows the area.
The photograph above shows some fragments of the aeroplane that Eric located during their visit. The photograph below shows a good example of a Hurricane part number on a fragment that was retained by Eric following their visit.
