Halifax MZ433 at Melbourne airfield.

On 11th March 1945 this 10 Squadron aircraft was flown on an operational flight to bomb Essen. The crew took off from Melbourne airfield at 10.30hrs and released their bomb load onto target markers at 15.09hrs from 19,000 feet. Because of a problem with the hydraulics the crew landed at Carnaby at 17.39hrs which must have been without incident. The hydraulic problem must have been checked and fixed within an hour or so because later that evening the aircraft took off from Carnaby to fly back to Melbourne. At 19.45hrs the aircraft was making an approach to land at Melbourne when the pilot must have misjudged the aircraft's height and simply flew into the ground on the approach with the wheels down. After the first touch down it struck the ground heavily, the aircraft then bounced some fifty feet, then bounced again and finally the port undercarriage had had enough and collapsed. The aircraft skidded to a halt and a fire developed. The managed to scramble clear without injury.

Pilot - WO Ronald William Clifford Poley RAFVR (1375382).

Navigator - F/Sgt A Johnson

Bomb Aimer - F/Sgt Herbert William Mercy Ebden

Wireless Operator / Air Gunner - WO M Cohen

Air Gunner - Sgt R Speight

Flight Engineer - Sgt Richard Hibbert Spratt

Air Gunner - F/Sgt Ronald Henry Rudyard Grayson