On the night of 17th / 18th May 1944 the crew of this 1664 Heavy Conversion Unit aircraft took off from Dishforth airfield at 21.35hrs to undertake a night cross country training flight. As the aircraft arrived back in the circuit to land at Dishforth at 01.55hrs the starboard inner engine failed, the aircraft uncontrollably lost height and it crashed near Norton le Clay before base could be reached. Sadly one member of the crew sustained fatal injuries as a result of the accident. Of those listed below the pilot, bomb aimer and wireless operator appear to have remained together in the same crew and were later posted to 425 Squadron.
Flight Engineer - Sgt Derek Shirley Smith RAFVR (1673879), aged 20, of Tankerton. Buried Gillingham Cemetery, Kent.
Pilot - F/O Norman Ernest Streight RCAF (J/27638).
Navigator - F/O W Hugh Potts RCAF. Injured.
Bomb Aimer - F/O Stewart Barclay Duern RCAF (J/21786). Slightly injured.
Air Gunner - Sgt Ronald Brewster Hamilton RCAF. Seriously injured.
Wireless Operator / Air Gunner - P/O Roy S Collins. (J/35245).
Air Gunner? - Sgt Reed. Uninjured.
Stewart Duern was born in August 1919 in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. He was working as a commercial artist and living in Hamilton, Ontario when he enlisted for RCAF service on 30th September 1941. He received a commission on 18th December 1942 after basic training in Canada and appears to have remained in Canada serving at a bombing and gunnery school possibly as a member of their flying staff. He arrived in the UK in August 1943 and would later be posted to 425 Squadron following training at 1664 HCU. For service with 425 Squadron he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, Gazetted on 16th January 1945. He was recommended for the DFC on 22nd October 1944 when he had flown 34 operational flights, the recommendation stated that as "A bomb aimer in a Halifax bomber, Flying Officer Duern has recently completed a tour of operations against enemy targets. Among the more important targets bombed were Stuttgart, Kiel, Wesselling, Hamburg and Osnabruck. On the night of July 18th 1944, his crew was detailed to bomb Wesselling, Germany. The target was heavily defended and the aircraft was riddled with heavy flak while coned. Undaunted by this adverse condition, Flying Officer Duern, making use of all the skill at his command, drove home a successful attack.In times of stress, his cool efficiency and unfailing accuracy have been largely responsible for the splendid record set up by his crew. His ability for precise bombing has been a constant source of encouragement and confidence to the other members of his crew." He returned to Canada in August 1945 and left the RCAF two months later. He died in 2007.
Norman Streight was born in 1924 in Moosomin, Saskatchewan, Canada and by the time he had enlisted for RCAF service in Vanciouver on 13th April 1942 he had served in the Canadian Army for a year. He too was was posted to 425 Squadron after 1664 HCU. He awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for service with 425 Squadron, Gazetted on 27th October 1944. The citation for his DFC stated that "This officer has completed many successful sorties and has invariably displayed a high standard of skill and determination, qualities which were well illustrated one night in July 1944 when detailed to attack a target. Soon after the takeoff, one engine became defective. The propeller was feathered and Flying Officer Streight continued to the target which he reached at the estimated time, and executed his attack. He afterwards flew the aircraft safely to base. His ability and determination to press home his attacks have been most commendable."
Ronald "Bud" Hamilton was born in November 1924. He sustained serious injuries in the accident detailed above including a broken back and was in hospital for six months. He later returned to Canada and died in November 2011.
F/O Potts may well have been posted to 429 Squadron after recovering from his injuries and completing his H.C.U. training.
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