ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 225036
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| Date: | Sunday 29 March 1942 |
| Time: | 13:35 |
| Type: |  Supermarine Spitfire Vb |
| Owner/operator: | 402 (City of Winnipeg) Sqn RCAF |
| Registration: | BL989 |
| MSN: | |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Aircraft missing |
| Location: | Bristol Channel, 5 miles west of Helwick Lightship, off Worms Head -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Aerial patrol |
| Departure airport: | RAF Fairwood Common |
| Return. |
Spitfire Mk.Vb BL989: Delivered to RAF at 37 MU 25-2-42. Issued to 402 (City of Winnipeg) Squadron, RAF Colerne, Wiltshire 8-3-42 as "AE-J". Written off (destroyed) when engine failed, and aircraft crashed into Bristol Channel, 5 miles west of Helwick Lightship, off Worms Head, Gower, Swansea, Glamorgan 29-3-42. Pilot - Flight Sgt Lloyd George Elliott, RCAF (Service number R/80244) - was rescued, but died later the same day. SOC 31-3-42
Details:
After the outbreak of war, 112 Squadron was sent to Ottawa in February 1940, and equipped with the Westland Lysander stocks of which were left behind when 110 Squadron were posted overseas. The squadron was likewise sent to Europe on the 30th of June 1940 with the intention for 112 Squadron to become part of the BEF but the decision was made that Army Co-operation squadrons were not needed in France, and the squadron was re-deployed to coastal defence duties in England.
On 11 December 1940, the squadron was re-designated 2 Sqn’ and equipped with the Hawker Hurricane 1 Finally, in March 1941, while stationed at RAF Digby the squadron was renumbered as No. 402 Squadron RCAF to comply with Article XV and re-equipped with the Hawker Hurricane 2 the following May and then Hurricane Mk.IIBs in June. With these, it began training to become the first "Hurribomber" unit, commencing operations in this role in November 1941, carrying pairs of 250 lb bombs beneath the wings.
402 squadron were based at RAF Warmwell during the months leading up to March 1942, then on the 4th of March, elements of the squadron involved with flying, were sent off to RAF Colerne to await the ferry delivery of their new Spitfire MkV. The other trades along with the administrative staff started the move to Fairwood leaving the Hurribombers behind at Warmwell. At Colerene, as the aircraft were being ferried in, the pilots waisted no time in familiarising themselves with the new fighter with two 20mm Hispano Cannon in conjunction with four .303 Browning machine guns in the outer positions in the ‘B’ wing. On the 16th and 17th of March, the squadron moved by air, road and rail to Fairwood Common. On the 18th, the squadron rehearsed, flew practice flying and Cannon firing off Worms Head. At 19:30 hours that evening they were declared operational on Spitfires.
Spitfire BL989 arrived to the squadron on the 8th of March then on the 17th, she was flown from Colerne to Fairwood in the hands of one F/Sgt Brown. She flew at least two flights a day up to the 28th of March, then on the 29th of March in the hands of F/Sgt Elliott for the first time (he had been with the squadron since 1941.)
The following is an extraction from the squadron records, held at Kew Gardens in the National Archives.
CONVOY PATROL CASUALTY REPORT.
No. 402 Squadron RCAF 29.3.42
“Red section, Spitfire VB’s of 402 squadron RCAF. Left Fairwood Common at 13:13 hours. To patrol the convoy ‘YOUNG’ and were reported in position at 3,000 feet at 13:55 hours. Red 2 (F/Sgt Elliott) called up Red 1 (F/Sgt Brown) and reported his engine was cutting out, he then repeated the message to Operations who obtained a fix on his position. Red 2 then turned and glided towards the convoy, trying all the time to re-start his engine, Red 1 was following Red 2 in his glide told him to bail out. But by this time, he had succeeded in getting his engine to fire a few times. This no doubt encouraged him to keep trying. Finally, however, he called up to say that he was going to crash land in the sea. Red 2’s position on landing was twelve miles south of Tenby and about one-half mile from the middle of the convoy.
Red 1 saw the aircraft pancake on the sea, bounce a short distance and turn up on it’s nose, the A/C stayed in this position for about 45 seconds before sinking. Red 1 did not see Red 2 in the water after the landing but did see a small unidentified object floating in the patch of oil left by Red 2 A/C. One ship flying a barrage balloon and two escort vessels went to the spot immediately and one of the escort vessels launched a small boat which made a careful search of the oil patch left by Red 2 A/C. Red 1 who was orbiting the spot the whole time saw no one picked up by the rescue craft, which after it’s search returned to the escort vessel, the three vessels then went back to the convoy. Red 1 continued to search the area of the crash for some time but saw no sign, he too returned to the convoy and continued the patrol until ordered back to Fairwood. Red 1 landed at Fairwood Common at 14:45 hours.
Further searches of three flights were carried out by Sqn/Ldr R. E. Morrow & Air search rescue boats. These too revealed no sign of Red 2.”
Our Casualties: - (Aircraft), 1 Spitfire VB (Cat’ E).
(Personnel), Can’ R80244 F/Sgt Elliott L. G. (Missing).
*…………..Signature…………*
Intelligence Officer.
No.402 Squadron RCAF.
BL989 came down near LV-19 the Helwick Lightship. This was not mentioned in the records due to the ‘Need to know’ within reporting during the war. LV-19 was retired in 1977 and is now permanently moored at Swansea Marina and is now the property of the Maritime Museum there. With the progress of modern navigation, the sand bank collectively known as the Helwicks, no longer has a Lightship at this location making the last resting site of BL989 and her brave pilot very difficult to find with sonar.
Crew:
F/Sgt Lloyd George Elliott R/80244 RCAF. Pilot. Missing.
Buried:
Runnymede Memorial. Panel 103.
Wreckage:
From a request for sand dredging in the area by Llanelli Sand Dredging Ltd to NRW (Natural Resources Wales) BL989 was recognised as a known ‘Anomaly’ on the survey. It appears that the Spitfire is still in a complete state. (Concise excerpt from the survey follows.)
Additional Information:
(9.10 Maritime archaeology and cultural heritage 9.10.1 The Royal Commision on the Ancient and Historic Monuments Wales (RCAHMW) suggested that anomalies identified within the ES (MS-1001-5) may be partially buried fuselage of spitfire BL989 which is known to have been downed in the vicinity. RCHAMW have requested ground truthing of these anomalies to confirm what these features actually are via dive surveys, ROV or drop down camera. RCHAMW have stated that if these anomalies are of archaeological interest then ongoing seabed monitoring should be put in place.
The applicant was reluctant to carry out any ground trothing on the 3 anomolies as, once plotted it became evident that they fall outside of the current active dredge zone, 100m east of Active Dredge Zone 3 and 350m east of the proposaed Active dredge Zone 3.
The applicant response was forwarded to RCHMW who did not wish to retract there request for ground trothing. RCAHMW have suggested a precautionary approach may be adopted where by bathymetric reports submitted in years 2, 6, 10 and 15 of the licence be sent to LSDL archaeological consultant for review to allow for comparison.)
Sources:
1. Halley, J J, 2006, Royal Air Force Aircraft BA100 to BZ999, page 77
2. http://www.airhistory.org.uk/spitfire/p025.html
3. http://www.ggat.org.uk/timeline/pdf/Military%20Aircraft%20Crash%20Sites%20in%20Southeast%20Wales.pdf
4. https://www.coflein.gov.uk/en/site/515478/details/supermarine-spitfire-vb-bl989
5. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/1269549/elliott,-lloyd-george/
6. http://www.rwrwalker.ca/RAF_owned_BK100.html
7. http://allspitfirepilots.org/pilots/804
8. https://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/memorials/canadian-virtual-war-memorial/detail/1269549
nationalarchives.gov.uk
enjoygower.com
nrw.gov.uk
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 12-May-2019 15:53 | Dr. John Smith | Added |
| 12-May-2019 15:58 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Source, Narrative] |
| 15-May-2019 07:39 | stehlik49 | Updated [Operator] |
| 01-Mar-2022 07:14 | Davies 62 | Updated [Time, Nature, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Damage, Narrative] |
| 01-Mar-2022 07:14 | Davies 62 | Updated [Time, Nature, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Damage, Narrative] |
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