During the afternoon of Sunday, 4th January 1953 the seventeen year old student pilot of this aircraft was making a flight from Tadcaster to Woolsington that would have seen him qualify for his Air Ministry "A-Licence". He appears to have taken a route from Tadcaster toward the Yorkshire Coast then proceeded to head north. As he reached the River Tees fog became a problem with visibility so he opted to make a force-landing in a field between Kiltonthorpe and Brotton which he did without damage to the aircraft or himself. The following day another aeroplane was flown into the field from Woolsington with a flying instructor and also the manager of Woolsington airport. The instructor and the initial pilot took off in the Tiger Moth and the manager flew the other back to Woolsington.
A photograph of the aircraft was printed in a local newspaper but unfortunately does not give a clear image of the registration. Searching through the Tiger Moth production list the only one that fits with the Newcastle Municipal Flying School, Woolsington is G-AIVW and this also fits with the partly obscured registration on the photograph.
Pilot - Mr John Hanson.