Halifax MZ569 at Tholthorpe airfield.
During the afternoon on 8th June 1944 this 420 Squadron aircraft was used to fly a training exercise, while I have no yet found information to state what nature the exercise took but a thirty minute flight had already been made. At 15.11hrs the crew attempted to take off from Tholthorpe but immediately after became airborne the aircraft began to shudder violently. Understanding that there was a problem the pilot cut the power to the engines and immediately landed, the undercarriage was still lowered but in an attempt to stop the aircraft over-running the airfield the undercarriage was raised. It was thought that the aircraft had became airborne in stalled condition. Airfield staff worked fast to clear the damaged aircraft from a position just west of the east-west runway as had it been left there it would have prevented operational sorties from taking off that evening.
Pilot - F/O Jack Maxwell Zavitz RCAF (J/15532).