Spitfire AR344 at Lindholme airfield.
During the afternoon of 30th October 1945 this aircraft was flown on a fighter affiliation exercise. It appears to have been on charge with No.71 Base rather than a specific flying unit. At dusk, the time stated on the AM Form 1180 is 16.55hrs, the aircraft landed at Lindholme airfield but the starboard undercarriage leg then collapsed. Lindholme airfield's station record book recorded the incident as being a Spitfire that crashed 200 yards from the (flying) caravan, Runway 23 and that the crash tender was despatched. An investigation found that the starboard leg was not locked down prior to the landing but that a fault with the microswitch that gave a "good" green indicator light in the cockpit made the pilot believe that it was correctly locked in place. The aircraft must have been deemed repairable as the incident does not feature in Colin Cummings' book "The Price of Peace" which lists write-offs for the post-war 1945 period.
Pilot - W/O George James Beadle RAFVR (1295579).