During the morning of the 24th April 1944 the crew of this 425 Squadron Halifax took off from Tholthorpe airfield to undertake a fighter affiliation training exercise. Such a training flight would involve a fighter aircraft making dummy attacks on the Halifax to simulate an enemy aircraft attacking, this would give the crew experience in using their intercom to inform the pilot where the attacks were coming from to enable him to take evasive action and also for the gunners to swing their guns at the fighter. Along with eight aircrew there was also a member of ground crew, that of a radar mechanic checking some of the electronic equipment on board. During the exercise the aircraft was flying in the area south west of Thirsk and in the course of the flight tight turns were being made to try and lose the attacking aircraft. One of these tight turns was too severe and the aircaft stalled and went into a flat spin. In the height available there was not enough room for the pilot to regain control. The Hurricane pilot, F/Sgt Wilson, later stated that he saw Halifax make two spins before it hit the ground at 11.37hrs on farmland in Sowerby Park. Sadly all nine flying in the aircraft were killed, the eldest being just twenty two years old. This crash occurred less than a mile from where Halifax EB205 had crashed just days earlier. Historians Ken Reast, Albert Pritchard and Eric Barton located small pieces of this aircraft in August 1998 to confirm the crash location, with permission from the landowner.
Pilot - F/O Peter J Krause USAAF (T.223125), aged 20, of Chicago, Illinois, USA. Initially buried Madingley USAAF Cemetery, Cambridge. Now buried St.Casimir Catholic Cemetery, Chicago, Illinois, USA.
Pilot - F/O John Alexander Gillies RCAF (J/24961), aged 22, of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Buried Harrogate Stonefall Cemetery, Yorkshire (B/B/8).
Flight Engineer - Sgt Alfred Arthur John Higgins RAFVR (1808537), aged 21, of Leytonstone. Buried Woodgrange Park Cemetery, Essex.
Wireless Operator / Air Gunner - Sgt Charles Francis West RAFVR (1330246), aged 22, of Leyton, Essex. Buried Abney Park Cemetery, London (E4/RN5120).
Air Gunner - P/O Kenneth Peter Campbell RCAF (J/90947), aged 22, of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. Buried Harrogate Stonefall Cemetery, Yorkshire (B/B/5).
Air Gunner - P/O John Peter Leech RCAF (J/88346), aged 20. Buried Harrogate Stonefall Cemetery, Yorkshire (B/B/3).
Air Gunner - P/O David Pickering RCAF (J/91050), aged 22, of Sexsmith, Alberta, Canada. Buried Harrogate Stonefall Cemetery, Yorkshire (B/B/6).
Air Gunner - P/O Richmond Wesley Smith RCAF (J/87649), aged 22, of Nelson, British Columbia, Canada. Buried Harrogate Stonefall Cemetery, Yorkshire (B/B/7).
Fitter (Radar Mechanic) - Cpl Leonard Russell Wilcox RCAF (R/74336), aged 22, of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Buried Harrogate Stonefall Cemetery, Yorkshire (B/B/4).
John Gillies was born on 14th August 1921 and was the son of Alexander Buntin and Amy Gillies. He was married to Hellen Sybil Gillies.
Kenneth Campbell was born on 2nd March 1922 at Victoria, Britsh Columbia, Canada and was the son of Peter Robertson and Victoria May (nee Morry) Campbell. After leaving high school in 1937 he worked at a number of jobs, latterly in a naval dock yard. He enlisted for RCAF service in Vancouver on 16th September 1942 and undertook aircrew training, gaining his air gunners' flying badge on 17th September 1943. On arrival in the UK soon after he trained at 82 OTU and before posting to 425 Squadron on 29th March 1944. He appears to have received a back dated commission after his death, dated to 23rd April 1944.
John Leech was born on 14th January 1924 at New Liskeard, Ontario, Canada and was the son of James Joseph and May Morrison (nee McFarlane) Leech. He was working as a jeweller when he enlisted for RCAF service in Toronto on 5th October 1942. After training in Canada he was awarded his air gunner's flying badge on 23rd July 1943. He was posted to the UK the same month and would then train at 22 OTU, 21 OTU and 1664 HCU before posting to 425 Squadron on 26th March 1944. He appears to have received a back dated commission after his death, dated to 23rd April 1944.
David Pickering was born on 18th May 1922 in Sexsmith, Alberta, Canada and was the son of Raymond and Jennie (nee Williams) Pickering. Both his parents were English but had emigrated to Canada. After leaving school in 1938 David worked on the family farm until enlisting for RCAF service on 3rd November 1942 at Edmonton. After training in Canada he was awarded his Air Gunner's flying badge on 17th September 1943. On arrival in the UK he trained at 22 OTU, 21 OTU and 1664 HCU before posting to 425 Squadron on 26th March 1944. He appears to have received a back dated commission after his death, dated to 23rd April 1944.
Richmond Smith was born on 27th April 1922 at Clarenton, Quebec, Canada and was the son of Robert George and Maude (nee Young) Smith. After leaving school in 1937 he worked in ranching and latterly repairing ships. He enlisted for RCAF service on 4th September 1942 in Vancouver and after undertaking basic training he was awarded his air gunners' flying badge on 17th September 1943. he then left for service in the UK and trained at 18 OTU, 82 OTU and 1666 HCU before posting to 1666 HCU on 29th March 1944. He appears to have received a back dated commission after his death, dated to 23rd April 1944.
Leonard Wilcox was born on 18th January 1922 at Ottawa, Ontario, Canada and was the son of Frederick and Annie (nee Wootton) Wilcox. As a young man he initially worked as a shipping clerk and as a clerk for the Royal Bank of Canada before beginning what could well have been a long career in the civil service had the war not intervened. At the outbreak of the war he had gained employment as an office boy in the Canadian Prime Minister's Office which then appears to have progressed into being a messenger. Two of his refereee's on his RCAF enlistment papers was the prolific Canadian civil servant Arnold Heeney; Clerk to the Privy Council and also Walter Turnbull; principal secretary to the Canadian Prime Minister. Leonard enlisted 22nd October 1940 in Ottawa initially for aircrew service and began pilot training but in May 1941 he appears to have failed a basic pilot course and left the RCAF being too tall for other trades at the time. Returning to civilian life he briefly worked a chemist lab assistant. He re-enlisted for RCAF service on 16th September 1941 to train as a radar (radio direction finding) mechanic in the ground trades and qualified under this trade. In June 1942 he was posted to the UK, in July 1942 he was posted to 604 Squadron, then to 22 OTU in August 1942. In July 1943 he was posted to 214 Squadron, October 1943 to 408 Squadron and then to 425 Squadron in January 1944. I have not yet located a photograph of him.
Sgt Charles West had already survived the crash of Halifax EB181 at Kepwick Bank, on the North York Moors when training with 1664 Heavy Conversion Unit in September 1943, following this crash he was the only survivor from his original seven man crew. I am desperately seeking a photograph of him to add to both webpages.
Alfred Higgins' brother Sgt George Albert Higgins RAFVR (1876641) was killed flying with 50 Squadron on 8th July 1944 when Lancaster DV227 was shot down by a night-fighter on Ops to St-Leu. He is buried in Moliens Communal Cemetery, France.
Peter Krause was born Peter Krasnauskas in 1923 in Chicago, USA and was the son of Simon and Nellie (Aniele) Krasnauskas. As a young man he studied at the St.Rita of Cascia High School in Chicago, in 1942 and member of the St.Rita Spread Eagle Squadron.