Beech B.200 Super King Air G-MDJI near Otley.
On Monday, 19th October 1987 this aircraft was due to be flown on a passenger flight from Leeds-Bradford airfield to Alicante, Spain under lease from the owner. The owner did not have the certificate required to operate the passenger flight themselves but the leasee did. At 06.00hrs on 19th October 1987 a pilot, flying solo, took off from Teesside airport to undertake the short positioning flight to Leeds-Bradford airfield. Once near the airfield the pilot made contact with flying control at Leeds-Bradford. He was given details of the runway to land on and the visibility conditions. A short time later he was given permission to continue to make a landing approach using instruments and then permission to land. The landing approach for the runway in use was from the north of Leeds-Bradford and over some rising ground just south of Otley. Unfortunately on this occasion, this aircraft began to let down for the final approach too soon and before it crossed over the Otley Chevin ridge. It therefore flew into trees on the north side of the ridge and partly broke up before crashing and being destroyed by an intense fire. The sole occupant was killed.
The aircraft was registered to Artix Ltd, of Peterlee, Durham at the time and to whom the pilot was employed.
Pilot - Mr Alan Turley AFC. Aged 57. Burial location unknown (see below).
Alan Turley was a former RAF pilot. He was involved in a number of flying incidents, these included crashing Lightning XM993 at Middleton St.George on 12th December 1962 and ejecting from Lightning XP760 off Northumblerland on 24th August 1966. He was flying as passenger with wife Dawn piloting Proctor G-AGWB during an air race on 5th August 1967 when it crashed at North Cowton and injured them both. On 1st January 1968 he was awarded the Air Force Cross and later left the RAF. Newspapers stated that a "special service" was held at Commondale Church, in the village where he lived, a month after his death. Specifically not a funeral and perhaps a hint that the post-crash fire was so severe that no recovery was possible.