Unidentified Halifax at Topcliffe airfield.
On 17th August 1944 this 1659 Heavy Conversion Unit aircraft was flown on an evening cross country training flight. During the flight the aircraft suffered the failure of one of the engines and the crew shut it down and feathered the propeller. Having made an earlier return to the landing circuit of Topcliffe airfield the crew were unable to make an approach on the runway in use as the aircraft could not be stopped from swinging to starboard and the crew would need to make a turn to port to line up with that runway. The pilot asked flying control for permission to land across the airfield. Flying control lit the lights on a different runway but the aircraft swung further to starboard and away from that runway approach. Having reached the third runway approach, a landing was successful but the aircraft over-ran the concrete and through a fence into the overshoot area. The only mention of the incident currently located is recorded in Topcliffe airfield record book and while it states that the aircraft sustained no damage it failed to properly identify it other than as "RV-H". The aircraft must have sustained very minor damage running through a fence. The pilot and his crew were posted to 424 Squadron ten days later.
Pilot - F/O Samuel Donald Sanders RCAF (J/27679).