On 16th December 1943 the crew of this 1663 Heavy Conversion Unit aircraft were to undertake a local night flying exercise as part of the training course. During the flight and while possibly lining up for an approach to land back at Rufforth airfield the aircraft descended through cloud into clear ground, the pilot's attention was then distracted from the instruments while he searched for the airfield Drem lighting and the aircraft unfortunately continued to descend until it flew into the ground. The aircraft crashed into a ploughed field at 22.50hrs near to Whixley Lodge and sadly one of the crew died as a result of the crash.
Pilot - F/O Walter George Driscoll RAFVR (151252). Injured.
Navigator - F/O Leslie Fletcher RAFVR (151050), aged 25, of Worsborough Dale, Barnsley. Buried Ardsley Cemetery, Barnsley, Yorkshire.
Flight Engineer - Sgt Edmund Hurst RAFVR (528937). Injured.
Bomb Aimer - Sgt J A MacTavish RCAF (R/59199). Injured.
? - Sgt B Standing RAF. Injured.
? - F/O F M Parks RCAF. Injured.
Air Gunner - Sgt Norman Soulsby RAFVR (985124). Injured.
F/O Walter Driscoll, Sgt Hurst and Sgt Soulsby were later posted to 624 Squadron but were killed on 14th August 1944 when Halifax JN896 failed to return from an operational flight. All are commemorated on the Malta Memorial. Walter Driscoll received a commission to the rank of P/O on probation on 19th February 1943 and rose to F/O six months later.