ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 228800
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| Date: | Sunday 2 June 1940 |
| Time: | 19:00 LT |
| Type: |  Hawker Hurricane Mk 1 |
| Owner/operator: | 73 Sqn RAF |
| Registration: | P2700 |
| MSN: | TP-K |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | North east of Proviseux-et-Plesnoy, 20 km North of Reims -
 France
|
| Phase: | Combat |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | Gaye Airfield, Marne, France |
Hawker Hurricane Mk.I P3543 (TP-K) 73 Squadron, RAF: Written off (destroyed) when lost (failed to return) from combat operations over France on 1 June 1940. Pilot killed. According to the official Air Ministry file into the incident (File AIR 81/750): "Hurricane P2700 crashed at Plesnoy, France, 2 June 1940. Sergeant W Millner: report of death"
Took off from Gaye Airfield, Marne, France for a combat air patrol and to attack enemy aircraft at Malmaison aerdrome; believed shot down by Bf 109 piloted by Oblt Heinz Kunert of 2./JG 53. Aircraft caught fire, crashed in flames North east of Proviseux-et-Plesnoy, 20 km North of Reims. On 25 November 2015, Sgt Wilfred Millner's medals were put up for auction, and the auctioneer's catalogue contained a short biography of the pilot:
"Wilfred Millner, a native of Scarborough, where he attended the Boys High School and excelled in rugby, served as a pilot on the North-West Frontier prior to the outbreak of hostilities in September 1939. He joined No. 73 Squadron in France on 21 May 1940, direct from an Anti-Aircraft Co-operation Unit and was killed in action on 1 June. His C.O. submitted the following report:
‘On 1 June 1940, at 18.45 hours, Sergeant Millner took off on patrol and during the course of a combat with Bf 109s over Malmaison aerodrome, was apparently shot down. During this encounter, two Hurricanes were either shot down or hit by heavy A.A. fire. One of these was seen with a Bf 109 on its tail and before help could arrive it was seen to turn right, burst into flames and crash. Of the other Hurricane, nothing is known of its fate.’
The following eulogy appeared in 73’s O.R.B.:
‘Sgt. Millner had come to us from England, on the verge of being commissioned and had had considerable flying experience, though not, alas, on Hurricanes. Like so many others of the Sgt. Pilot class, he was obviously well-educated and popular with his brother pilots, who will undoubtedly miss him ... casualties are inevitable at such a time as this, and perhaps no amount of skill or past experience would avail when faced with such overwhelming odds, and too much significance must not be attached to the fact that our newest joined are being written off at this rate – the toll they have taken must not be forgotten, either."
As "Lot 490", the medals of Sgt Wilfred Millner fetched a total at auction of £950
Crew of Hurricane P2700:
Sergeant (Pilot) Wilfred Millner, RAF 580106, killed in action 01/06/1940, buried at Terlincthun British Cemetery, Wimille, Pas de Calais, France
The reported crash location of Proviseux-et-Plesnoy is a commune in the Aisne department in Hauts-de-France in northern France, 20 km north of Reims, at approximate coordinates: 49°27′56″N 4°00′38″E
Sources:
1. Royal Air Force Aircraft P1000-P9999 (James J Halley, Air Britain, 1978)
2. National Archives (PRO Kew) File AIR 81/750: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C14502634
3. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2280928/millner,-wilfred/
4. http://www.epibreren.com/ww2/raf/73_squadron.html#0106
5. http://francecrashes39-45.net/page_fiche_av.php?id=5439
6. https://www.the-saleroom.com/it-it/auction-catalogues/dixnoonanwebb/catalogue-id-dix-no10014/lot-42e8c399-f102-4774-b0a8-a54c00a7294d
7. http://www.rafcommands.com/forum/showthread.php?21792-Y0030-Hurricane-I-73-Sqdn-TP-K-01-06-1940
History of this aircraft
Other occurrences involving this aircraft
| 22 December 1939 | L1967 | 73 Sqn RAF | 1 | near Altroff, Bettelainville, 2 km NE of Metz, Moselle 57 | |
w/o |
| 15 May 1940 | P3278 | 73 Sqn RAF | 0 | West of Vouzières, Ardennes | |
w/o |
| 13 June 1940 | P2803 | 73 Sqn RAF | 1 | Chateau-Renault, near Ruaudin, SE of Le Mans, Sarthe | |
w/o |
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 08-Sep-2019 02:31 | Dr. John Smith | Added |
| 08-Sep-2019 02:32 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Time] |
| 17-Sep-2019 20:03 | Nepa | Updated [Operator, Operator] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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