Halifax NP948 at Skipton on Swale airfield.
During the evening of 24th October 1944 this 433 Squadron aircraft was flown on an operational flight to lay mines in what was described as the "Onion area" off Oslo and took off from Skipton on Swale airfield at 17.49hrs. Unfortunately the starboard outer engine began to overheat on the outbound leg of the flight and the engine had to be shut down. The crew returned to Skipton on Swale with the full load of mines on board and while flying on three engines the approach to land was made too steeply and also the aircraft landed too far down the runway at 19.29hrs. After landing the pilot was unable to stop the aircraft on the remaining runway and overshot, it ran through the overshoot area and after passing over a ditch the undercarriage collapsed. While the landing was a poor one the investigation also deemed that the overshoot area at this end of the airfield at Skipton on Swale was poor.
Pilot - F/O Robert Alexander Forbes RCAF (J/86735).
Navigator - F/O W J Hamilton RCAF (J/36318).
Air Bomber - F/O James Edwin Culley RCAF (J/35535).
Wireless Operator / Air Gunner - WO L A Stephens RCAF (R/107771).
Flight Engineer - Sgt Godfrey Sherbrooke Bailey Foulkes RAFVR (1819610).
Air Gunner - P/O W A Countryman RCAF (J/89309).
Air Gunner - Sgt J Stelmachowich RCAF (R/75391).