Date:	Wednesday 4 March 1942
Time:
Type:	Handley Page Halifax Mk II
Owner/operator:	35 (Madras Presidency) Sqn RAF
Registration:	R9445
MSN:	TL-T
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 7
Aircraft damage:	Substantial
Location:	RAF Oakington, Cambridgeshire, England -   United Kingdom
Phase:	Landing
Nature:	Military
Departure airport:	RAF Linton-on-Ouse, North Yorkshire
Destination airport:

Narrative:
Hit by flak. Homebound made an emergency landing RAF Oakington. The aircraft sustained serious damage. No injuries reported.

Crew:-
Pilot : Flying Officer Samuel Davis Jones RAF 45065 : Commission Gazetted Tuesday 07 January, 1941)
2nd Pilot : Sergeant C S Stringer RAF 1377398
Flight Engineer : Sergeant John Maurice Mitchell RAF 637416
Observer : Sergeant H A Hawken RAF 1251076 [Injured]
Wireless Operator / Air Gunner : Sergeant R G A Harvey RAF 953625
Wireless Operator / Air Gunner : Sergeant James Henry Janes RAF 1255608
Air Gunner : Sergeant L P Russell RNZAF NZ/40209

In January 2020 the National Archives at Kew, England opened the Casualty Pack - the official RAF report of death or injury - relating to this aircraft on this particular sortie for public viewing.

It lists Sergeant H A Hawkin - please note spelling of family name as being different from that given above - as being injured when the aircraft crashed near Cottenham.

This file states that Navigator 1251076 Sergeant Hawken (please see note at source 3. below as there appears to be some confusion around the exact identity of this man) ‘slightly injured minor lacerations of scalp KINNOT’ [Next of kin notified].

Please see source 2. below for details.

According to the information in the file, other members of the crew are as the list above supplied by a previous researcher and were uninjured.

1. Bomber Command Losses 1942
2. AIR 81/12496 (available to view at the National Archives at Kew, England with a Reader’s Ticket). Please see notes at 3. below.
3. A website concerning the history of No. 462 Squadron lists 1251076 RAFVR as Navigator ARTHUR JOHN Hawken who at one time served with No.76 Squadron RAF. See https://www.462squadron.com/pages/squadron_crews/squadron_crews_middle_east.html

The file description for the Casualty Pack (cited above at 2.) lists the only casualty as ‘Sergeant H A Hawkin’ while documents inside refer to Sergeant Hawken.

UK National Archives have been alerted to the discrepancy between the catalogue description and the documents within the file and any clarification will be noted here.
4. Rob Davis Bomber Command Losses Database

Other occurrences involving this aircraft

21 July 1942	R9489	35 (Madras Presidency) Sqn RAF	9	Catterton near Tadcaster		w/o
25 August 1942	W7765	35 (Madras Presidency) Sqn RAF	2	Saint-Hilaire-au-Temple, Marne département		w/o
5 October 1942	DT489	35 (Madras Presidency) Sqn RAF	0	RAF Wyton, Huntingdonshire, England		min
11 August 1943	HR861	35 (Madras Presidency) Sqn RAF	3	Biblis, Hessen		w/o

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
11-Nov-2017 18:04	Red Dragon	Added
26-Oct-2018 18:34	stehlik49	Updated [Operator, Destination airport]
11-Jul-2023 21:59	Nepa	Updated [[Operator, Destination airport]]
03-Mar-2024 07:31	Rob Davis	Updated [Source, Narrative]
03-Mar-2024 07:32	Rob Davis	Updated [Narrative]