ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 193456
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| Date: | Thursday 21 October 1943 |
| Time: | 10:30 |
| Type: |  de Havilland DH.82 Tiger Moth II |
| Owner/operator: | 616 (South Yorkshire) Sqn RAF |
| Registration: | DE481 |
| MSN: | 85477 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Fairlie Estate, Ringwood, Hampshire, England -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | RAF Ibsley, Hampshire |
| RAF Exeter, Devon |
de Havilland DH.82 Tiger Moth MSN 85477: Taken on charge as DE481 at 5 MU RAF Kemble, Gloucestershire 28.2.42. To 116 Squadron, Heston 2.7.42. To 504 Squadron, Ibsley 29.4.43. To 129 Squadron, Ibsley 5.5.43. To 616 (South Yorkshire) Squadron, Ibsley 25.7.43.
Written off (damaged beyond repair) 21.10.43 when crashed at 200 yards from the London Tavern Hotel, Fairlie Estate, Ringwood, Hampshire. Both crew killed.
They were heading back from RAF Ibsley to their to base at RAF Exeter when the accident happened. The plane crashed as a result of a misjudgment of the pilot. Both occupants died in the crash of the plane.
An enquiry into the accident reported that: “the Pilot, Pilot Officer Smith, while engaged in unauthorised low flying over the London Tavern Hotel, Ringwood, which is 10 miles south of Bournemouth, misjudged his height after doing a stall turn to the right over the hotel, at approximately 100 feet. While pulling up out of the resultant dive, the aircraft lost flying speed, stalled and crashed 600 feet from the hotel. Both occupants were killed and the aircraft was a write off. The occupants of the aircraft both knew the proprietor of the hotel, and carried out two circuits of the hotel at 100 feet waving at the proprietor before doing a stall turn and crashing. All flying controls were in order as far as we are able to ascertain, and the engine was running normally at the time of the impact, but this cannot be substantiated until the engine is pulled down and examined.”
Crew of Tiger Moth DE481:
Pilot Officer Alan Finlay SMITH, RAAF (Pilot, Service Number Australia 412728) - killed in service 21.10.43, buried in the Brookwood Military Cemetery, Woking, Surrey UK.
Flight Sergeant Edwin Robert COLE RAF (Passegner, Service Number 1390924) - killed in service 21.10.43, buried Edmonton Cemetery, Edmonton, Middlesex
Sources:
1. https://air-britain.com/pdfs/production-lists/DH82.pdf
2. https://aviationmuseumwa.org.au/afcraaf-roll/smith-alan-finlay-412728/
3. http://ww2talk.com/index.php?threads/in-memoriam-those-air-force-pilots-crews-who-died-on-this-day-in-ww2.18267/page-40
4. http://www.aircrewremembered.com/smith-alan-finlay.html
5. http://www.airhistory.org.uk/dh/p854.html
6. https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/ViewImage.aspx?B=1078591
7. https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/2928956/ALAN%20FINLAY%20SMITH/
8. https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/2430421/EDWIN%20ROBERT%20COLE/
9. https://vwma.org.au/explore/people/647383
10. http://sussexhistoryforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=13314.0.
11. https://www.hampshireairfields.co.uk/hancrash.html
12. http://www.rafcommands.com/forum/showthread.php?18520-Fl-Sgt-Edwin-Robert-Cole
13. http://www.redtwo.plus.com/616/personneln_gr.htm
14. http://ww2talk.com/index.php?threads/in-memoriam-those-air-force-pilots-crews-who-died-on-this-day-in-ww2.18267/page-40
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 10-Feb-2017 11:18 | gerard57 | Added |
| 05-Aug-2021 10:19 | Anon. | Updated [Operator, Location, Departure airport, Narrative, Operator] |
| 05-Aug-2021 10:42 | BlB | Updated [Time, Aircraft type, Location, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, Operator] |
| 19-Aug-2021 22:43 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Cn, Source, Narrative, Category] |
| 19-Aug-2021 22:44 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Narrative] |
| 20-Aug-2021 16:52 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Narrative] |
| 20-Aug-2021 16:55 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Narrative] |
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