Wellington Z1204 at Holme on Spalding Moor airfield.
On 17th November 1941 this aircraft was parked at Holme on Spalding Moor airfield and may have been undergoing an engine service.
A tent was placed around the port side of the aircraft and a heater lamp was inside the tent, when at 01.05hrs the lamp was blown
over by wind and set fire to the tent. Before the fire could be put out damage was sustained to the port nacelle, port inner
plane, fuselage, tail unit, rudder and fin of the aircraft and the geodetics were affected by the heat of the fire.
Crew - None.
Wellington Z1204 was built to contract B.97887/40 by Vickers Armstrong's Ltd. at Chester (Hawarden) and was awaiting collection in June 1941. It was received by 48 M.U. on 4th June 1941 and then placed into storage for a couple of months before being taken on charge by the newly formed 458 Squadron at Holme on Spalding Moor on 7th September 1941. It's AM form 78 states that it received some form of damage on 4th November 1941 with it returned to 458 Squadron once repaired on 8th November 1941. As a result of the fire damage on 17th November 1941 Cat.B/GA was the assessment for the records and it was taken away by road to be repaired in works at Brooklands. After repair it was passed to 12 MU on 3rd May 1942. It was taken on charge by 301 Squadron at Hemswell on 26th June 1942 but it was not required there so was transferred to 300 Squadron at Hemswell the following day where it carried the squadron code "BH-V". On 18th May 1942 it moved with this unit to Ingham but on 3rd July 1942 it was being flown on Ops to Bremen when it was damaged by flak
and was ditched in the Ijsselmeer. Sadly the crew of six did not survive and Cat.Em damage was recorded on the paperwork.