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Date: | Friday 19 March 1954 |
Time: | day |
Type: | Hawker Sea Hawk F Mk I |
Owner/operator: | 787 Sqn FAA RN |
Registration: | WF221 |
MSN: | AWA |
Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
Location: | North Sea, 4 miles east of Mabelthorpe, Lincolnshire -
United Kingdom
|
Phase: | Initial climb |
Nature: | Test |
Departure airport: | RAF West Raynham, Norfolk |
Destination airport: | |
Confidence Rating: | Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources |
Narrative:Hawker Sea Hawk F.Mk.1 WF221: Built by Armstrong-Whitworth Aircraft Ltd., Baginton, Coventry, and first flown there on 10/11/1953. Delivered to the FAA RN (Fleet Air Arm Royal Navy) at HMS Blackcap, RNAS Stretton AHU 19/11/1953. First issued for service to 787 Squadron FAA RN at RAF West Raynham, Fakenham, Norfolk
Written off (destroyed) 19/3/54: While carrying out fuel consumption trials at 10,000 feet, pilot reported elevator control problems, and aircraft descended to 7,500 feet. Aircraft continued to descend, and pilot reported that he was baling out at 2,500 feet, over the North Sea, four miles east of Mablethorpe, Lincolnshire. The ejection/bail out was unsuccessful, and the pilot was killed.
Crew of Sea Hawk WF221:
Lieutenant Commander Reginald D. TAYLOR RN (pilot, on assignment from HMS Peregrine, RNAS Ford, West Sussex) - killed on active service 19/3/1954
Note that the official Board of Inquiry file at the National Archives at Kew (File ADM 1/25329) states "Aircraft Accidents: Sea Hawk F1 WF 221 on 19.3.54 from RNAS West Raynham" [sic]. West Raynham is where Sea Hawk WF221 took off from, not where it came down!
Sources:
1. Fleet Air Arm Fixed Wing Aircraft Since 1946 (Ray Sturtivant, Lee Howard & Mick Burrow, Air Britain, 2004 p.419)
2. National Archives (PRO Kew) File ADM 1/25329:
https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C4846441 3.
http://www.ukserials.com/results.php?serial=WF 4.
https://www.naval-history.net/xDKCas1954.htm 5.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mablethorpe Revision history:
Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
24-Apr-2020 19:58 |
Dr. John Smith |
Added |
08-Jul-2020 07:20 |
AlLach |
Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Location, Departure airport, Destination airport, Narrative, Operator] |
26-Aug-2020 21:06 |
Dr. John Smith |
Updated [Cn, Operator, Location, Nature, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
27-Aug-2020 10:28 |
AlLach |
Updated [Aircraft type, Cn, Operator, Location, Departure airport, Operator] |