During the late afternoon on 4th November 1942 this aircraft was being flown on a ferry flight away from Thornaby airfield where it had been with No.6 (Coastal) Operational Training Unit. The destination airfield was Gosport but why it was heading there is not clear. Owing to poor weather as they flew south the crew were diverted to St.Eval to land. Exactly what then happened is unclear because the crew then appear to have been heading north just before dusk. They then became lost due to failing light, rising fog, and loss of radio contact. At 18.20hrs a wheels-up forced landing was made through a gap in the fog in the region of Stocksbridge and Deepcar, Sheffield but the aircraft then slid in to a ravine and was badly damaged. The three on board escaped serious injury.
The Stocksbridge local history group have located a witness to this incident who stated that it came down on an old waste coal and slag tip in the Soughley / Soughley Bridge area, with it's wing striking a bank and it swung around ending up near the river.
Pilot - F/O William Hampson RAF (86696). Injured.
Navigator - P/O Gerald Maurice Inglis Tweedie RAFVR (116642). Injured.
Wireless Operator / Air Gunner - P/O Leslie Roy Aust DFM RAF (48957). Injured.
Hudson AM531 was built to British Purchasing Commission Contract A-1749 by the Lockheed Aircraft Corporation, at Burbank, California and was shipped to the UK, arriving at Liverpool Docks in May 1941. It was then transported by road to the Lockheed Assembly Division (UK) Ltd., at Speke for assembly and testing. It then went to 10 MU on 4th May 1941. It was taken on charge by 224 Squadron at Limavady on 24th May 1941. It was inspected by No.43 Group Damage Assessmemt on 1st August 1941 which must have been as the result of minor damage sustained in the days prior to this. It was then repaired and returned to 224 Squadron on 29th August 1941. On 11th November 1941 it received a Cat.Ac damage assessment and was repaired on site, being returned to 224 Squadron on 7th February 1942. Over the next months it served at Limavady and Tiree. On an unknown date it was transferred to 1428 (Ferry Training) Flight at Oulton but on 6th June 1942 1428 (F.T.)Flt. disbanded so the aircraft was transferred to 1406 (Met) Flight at Wick on 13th June 1942. The aircraft was transferred back to 224 Squadron at Tiree on 1st August 1942. On 22nd August 1942 it was transferred to 6 (c)OTU at Thornaby. On 4th November 1942 it crashed near Sheffield. The aircraft's AM Form 78 gives a date of 8th November 1942 that was for a transfer to "LFS A/C Ltd St.Hyde" which depending on what this means may have been why the aircraft was being ferried away from Thornaby at the time. This may have been for a disposal of the aircraft. As it happened the crash on 4th November 1942 saw a Cat.E2/FA damage assessment and it was struck off charge.
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