Wellington W5383 near Hunmanby.
On 3rd August 1941 the crew on this 142 Squadron aircraft were returning from an operational flight to Berlin in bad weather and had become lost. The radio set later failed and
running out fuel the pilot landed inside a field planted with anti-invasion concrete blocks near The Dotterel Inn, to the south of Hunmanby. The aircraft was slightly
damaged and later repaired.
Pilot - P/O George Milton Kelly RAF (41186).
Crew - Names unknown but possibly some of the following...
Second Pilot - Name unknown.
Observer - Sgt Kenneth Archibald Parslow RAF (744900).
Wireless Operator / Air Gunner - Sgt Gwladgwyn John Sharpe RAF (542001).
Wireless Operator / Air Gunner - Sgt Michael Thomas O'Brien RAF (650852).
Air Gunner - Sgt Albert William Kerrisk RNZAF (401499).
All of the crew listed below P/O Kelly were flying with P/O J G Scott on 20th January 1942 in Wellington Z1207 on Ops to Emden when the aircraft failed to return. All were killed.
P/O Scott had flown with P/O Kelly as a second pilot around the time of the forced landing in August 1941 near Hunmanby and may well have been on board at the time as well.
George Kelly received a grading of P/O from the rank of Acting P/O on probation on 25th July 1939 but the date of his commission is not yet known
(but probably earlier in 1939 or late 1938). On 4th July 1941 he force landed 142 Squadron Wellington due to engine failure but the location is not known.
He rose to F/O on 3th September 1940 and to F/Lt later in 1941. He finally rose to temporary S/Ldr in July 1945. With the Post-War changes to the terms
of his commission he reverted to the rank of F/Lt and extended his period of service for a further five
years in December 1945 and transferring to the Reserve in December 1947. As F/Lt he relinquished his commission in December 1953 but retained the rank
of S/Ldr. He later worked for the BOAC, the BEA and the Air Accidents Branch. He died in October 2010 aged ninety.
Wellington W5383 was built to contract B.71441/40 by Vickers at Weybridge and was awaiting collection in November 1940, it was issued to 142 Squadron based
at Binbrook in January 1941. The published Air Britain service history of this aircraft has numerous errors it, one being it states it was with 12 Squadron at the time of the landing at Hunmanby and this is not correct. Following the incident detailed above Cat.R(b) was recorded and it was repaired on site and returned to 142 Squadron on 15th November 1941. It's AM Form 78 states that it was "repaired on site" but perhaps given the months this took then it may have been transported by road to the closest airfield of Driffield. On 26th January 1942 it sustained Cat.B/FB damage that again saw it repaired on site and returned to 142 Squadron on 17th February 1942. On 17th April 1942 it was transferred to 12 Squadron. On 4th September 1942 a major inspection of the aircraft resulted in Cat.B damage being the assessment and it being sent for repair at Vickers at Weybridge. When ready in November 1942 it was flown to 8 MU on 6th November 1942. It sustained Cat.B/FA damage in a flying accident on 8th January 1943 which was repaired on site. It was received by the O.A.P.U. on 11th May 1943 and passed to 311 F.T.U. at Moreton in Marsh on 18th May 1943. After a very short stay there it moved to 3 O.A.D.U. at Hurn on 25th May 1943. The following day a crew began the ferry flight to the Middle East. On 1st July 1943 it joined 104
Squadron at Hani West, Tunisia. The unit ceased operating B.II Wellingtons in July 1943 and it was almost certainly flown to 135 MU (Aircraft Storage Unit Luxor,
Egypt), the desert storage unit for medium and heavy bombers, where it remained until being struck off charge on 25th May 1944.