Date:	Thursday 13 June 1940
Time:	19:00 LT
Type:	Fairey Battle Mk I
Owner/operator:	12 Sqn RAF
Registration:	L5324
MSN:
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 3
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	near St-Barthelémy (Seine-et-Marne), 26 km NNE of Provins -   France
Phase:	Combat
Nature:	Military
Departure airport:	Sougé, France
Destination airport:

Narrative:
Fairey Battle Mk.I L5324 (PH-A) 12 Squadron, RAF: Written off (destroyed) when lost (Failed To Return) from combat operations over France. Of the three crew, one was killed, the other two were injured. According to the official Air Ministry file into the incident (File AIR 81/960): "Battle L5324 failed to return from an operational flight, 13 June 1940. Sergeant N C Cotterell: report of death. Leading Aircraftman R A Copley and Pilot Officer J S Shorthouse: injured".

Airborne 17:50 hours from Sougé to bomb Panzer columns reported to be refueling in the Forêt de Gault, near Montmirail. Hit by intense Flak/ground AAA fire and crashed near St-Barthelémy (Seine-et-Marne), 26 km North North East of Provins, France. As stated above, one crew member was killed and the other two survived, albeit injured.

According to a biography of Richard Copley (see link #8) for this period:

"Richard Copley had a eventful if short wartime career in the RAF. On the 13th June 1940, he was with 12 Squadron, part of the Advanced Striking Force, flying in Fairey Battles from Souge, 25 miles South East of Le Mans. His aircraft (a Battle I L5324/PH-A) piloted by Pilot Officer J. S Shorthouse, the Navigator/Bomb Aimer was Sgt Norman Clifford Cotterell, and Richard was the Wireless Operator/Gunner. They took off at 17.50 to bomb Panzers reported to be refuelling in the Foret de Gault area. The aircraft was attacked by four Me 109's and caught fire and crashed, killing Norman Cotterell. The pilot and Richard parachuted out from the burning plane and were injured, Shorthouse having burns and Richard an injured right foot. Altogether, Richard flew 12 operations in Fairey Battles, four of them in daylight."

Crew of Battle L5324:
Pilot Officer J.S.Shorthouse (Pilot); survived, bailed out, sustained injuries (burns)
Sergeant (Observer) Norman Clifford Cotterell, RAF 580948, age 20, killed in action 13/06/1940, buried at St. Barthelemy Communal Cemetery, Seine-et-Marne, France
LAC Richard A Copley (Wireless Op./Air Gunner); survived, bailed out, sustained minor injuries to right foot - Probably evaded capture.

It is presumed that P/O Shorthouse and LAC Richard Copley managed to return to their units. The reported crash location of St. Barthélemy is a is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France, 72 kilometres north-east of Melun, and 6.2 kilometres north-east of La Ferté-Gaucher, at approximate Coordinates: 48°49′02″N 3°21′41″E

1. Royal Air Force Aircraft L1000-L9999 (James J Halley, Air Britain, 1978)
2. National Archives (PRO Kew) File AIR 81/960: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C14502411
3. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2235334/cotterell,-norman-clifford/
4. The Battle File (Sidney Shail, Air Britain, 1997 p 148)
5. http://www.epibreren.com/ww2/raf/12_squadron.html#1306
6. http://francecrashes39-45.net/page_fiche_av.php?id=222
7. http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/showthread.php?t=25329
8. http://home.clara.net/clinchy/neeb5.htm
9. https://www.ww2cemeteries.com/st-barthelemy-communal-cemetery.html
10. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint-Barth%C3%A9lemy,_Seine-et-Marne

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
07-Aug-2008 10:17	Anon.	Added
31-Jan-2012 01:33	Nepa	Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Location, Departure airport]
01-Oct-2019 18:17	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Date, Time, Registration, Operator, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Other fatalities, Location, Country, Phase, Departure airport, Source, Damage, Narrative]
01-Oct-2019 18:17	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Source, Narrative]
01-Oct-2019 18:20	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Aircraft type]
01-Oct-2019 18:22	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Narrative]
02-Oct-2019 09:17	stehlik49	Updated [Operator]