ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 172737
This information is added by users of ASN. Neither ASN nor the Flight Safety Foundation are responsible for the completeness or correctness of this information.
If you feel this information is incomplete or incorrect, you can submit corrected information.
| Date: | Monday 5 March 1945 |
| Time: | 17:00 |
| Type: |  Handley Page Halifax Mk III |
| Owner/operator: | 425 (Alouette) Sqn RCAF |
| Registration: | MZ454 |
| MSN: | |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 4 / Occupants: 7 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | near Little Ouseburn church, Little Ouseburn, North Yorkshire -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | Combat |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | RAF Tholthorpe, North Yorkshire |
| RAF Tholthorpe, North Yorkshire |
In the late afternoon of 5th March 1945, severe weather conditions were affecting flying over Yorkshire, and these conditions were not forecast prior to a number of aircraft taking off for Operations to attack Chemnitz, Germany. Many aircraft iced up just after leaving their home airfields. HP Halifax MZ454 ("KW-S" of 425 Sqn, RCAF) took from Tholthorpe at 16.40 hours and twenty minutes later it was returning to base suffering from these icing conditions, when it crashed close to Little Ouseburn church.
A crash investigation found in the National Archives on all the accidents on this night refers in brief to the accident at Little Ouseburn, it states that "this aircraft had crashed in a shallow dive as it had cut sideways through some trees. Here also was a deep crater where the bomb load had exploded. Only one whole engine was found, the parts of the others were located. There was no sign of fire on this engine at all but every sign of sufficient lubrication."
Four of the crew were killed but three survived after baling out at low level just before the aircraft struck the trees. The exploding bomb load caused the severe damage to the nearby church but it was later repaired and a memorial stained glass window in the church porch was installed in 1995.
The four aircrew killed were...
Pilot - F/O Arthur Robert Lowe RCAF (J/29556), aged 23, of USA but late of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Initially buried at Harrogate Stonefall Cemetery.
Flight Engineer - Sgt James Laurids Lynch RCAF (R/201189), aged 20, of Windsor, Ontario, Canada. Buried Harrogate Stonefall Cemetery, Yorkshire.
Air Gunner - F/O Paul John Hall RCAF (J/43949), aged 20, of St.George's, Newfoundland. Buried Harrogate Stonefall Cemetery, Yorkshire.
Air Gunner - P/O John William Hyde RCAF (J/95349), aged 35, of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Buried Harrogate Stonefall Cemetery, Yorkshire.
The three survivors of the crerw of seven were...
Navigator - F/O E S Brabbins RCAF (J/40690).
Bomb Aimer - F/O J F Brownell RCAF (J/40341), of Windsor, Ontario, Canada.
Wireless Operator / Air Gunner - F/Sgt K J S McCuaig RCAF (R/204103), of Kirkland Lake, Ontario, Canada.
MZ454 was one of a total of 256 Halifax aircraft sent to bomb Chemnitz: 24 were lost or failed to return from this operation.
Sources:
1. [LINK NOT WORKING ANYMORE:http://www.yorkshire-aircraft.co.uk/aircraft/yorkshire/mz454.html]
2. http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/YORKSGEN/2000-05/0957632122
3. http://www.bomber-command.info/haliraidmar45.htm
4. http://www.6bombergroup.ca/March45/Mar5~645.html
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 06-Jan-2015 22:16 | Dr. John Smith | Added |
| 25-May-2015 18:42 | Tu104 | Updated [Time, Operator] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
The Aviation Safety Network is an exclusive service provided by:
Quick Links:
| ASN Home | Send Correction / Feedback |
| FSF Home | Disclaimer | Copyright |
| Contact Us | Privacy Policy |
| Press / Media |
CONNECT WITH US:
©2024 Flight Safety Foundation