On the night of 2nd February 1945 the crew of this 640 Squadron aircraft took off from Leconfield airfield at 20.36hrs to undertake an operational flight to bomb an oil refining plant at Wanna-Eickel. This was to have been their first operational sortie. Not long after taking off the aircraft made a steep turn to the left, probably stalled and then lost height, struck a tree in or close to Lakes Wood, Scorborough and then crashed around a mile south of Lockington village. Sadly six members of the seven man crew died as a result of the crash. It was believed that the pilot had made a steep turn because he was aware that the steeple of Scorborough church lay roughly in a directly line with the end of the runway in use at Leconfield but because it was dark he could not see it. Historians Albert Pritchard, Eric Barton, Rodney Robinson and Ken Reast located small fragments on the surface at the crash site in January 2002 with permission from the landowner, confirming the crash location between Scorborough and Lockington. Whitley K9002 had done a very similar thing on 21st July 1939 in the same area that also killed three of its crew.
Pilot - P/O Noel Henry Sisley RAAF (425979), aged 20, of Wooloowin, Queensland, Australia. Buried Harrogate Stonefall Cemetery, Yorkshire (G/F/1).
Flight Enginer - Sgt Peter Raymond Jefferies RAFVR (3030814), aged 19, of Bromham. Buried Stagsden Churchyard, Bedfordshire.
Navigator - Sgt Thomas Aidan Gibson RAFVR (1673230), aged 21, of Bamburgh. Buried Bamburgh Churchyard, Northumberland.
Bomb Aimer - Sgt Alexander Gray RAFVR (1565369), aged 22, of Aberdeen. Buried Springbank Cemetery, Aberdeen.
Wireless Operator / Air Gunner - Sgt Martin Delahunty RAFVR (1683581), aged 21, of Prestwich. Buried Prestwich Churchyard Extension, Lancashire.
Mid Upper Gunner - F/Sgt Bradford William Owen Dockerty RAFVR (1801212), aged 21, of Send, Woking. Buried Abingdon New Cemetery, Berkshire.
Rear Gunner - Sgt John Samuel Whitmee RAFVR (1882495).
Noel Sisley was born on 12th February 1924 at Brisbane and was the son of Donald and Sisley. After leaving school he begun work as a bank clerk but then enlisted for RAAF service on 21st May 1942 at Brisbane, after training was awarded his Pilots Wings on 28th July 1943. On arrival in the UK he trained at 15 (P)AFU, 21 OTU and 1658 HCU. He received a commission on 11th September 1944 and he and his crew was posting to 640 Squadron on 24th January 1945.
The mid upper gunner was not a regular member of this crew, Sgt John Whitmee usually held this position but their regular rear gunner Richard Walker had been admitted to hospital so Whitmee took the place at the back and a spare gunner took the mid upper's seat. The replacement mid upper gunner was killed in the crash of MZ492 and Sgt Whitmee survived. Richard Walker would have another similar lucky escape when he avoided the crash of Lancaster PA411 in the Peak District on 9th December 1948 because he was on his honeymoon, his then crew were again killed. Ron Collier records in his "Dark Peak Aircraft Wrecks" book that Sgt Whitmee had been the best man at his wedding.