Date:	Friday 13 January 1950
Time:	day
Type:	Avro Anson T Mk 21
Owner/operator:	ATCS RAF
Registration:	VV986
MSN:
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	RAF Watchfield, 7.2 mi NE of Royal Wootton Bassett, Wiltshire, England -   United Kingdom
Phase:	Landing
Nature:	Training
Departure airport:	RAF Watchfield, Wiltshire
Destination airport:	RAF Watchfield, Wiltshire
Confidence Rating:	Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources

Narrative:
Avro Anson T.Mk.21 VV986, School of Air Traffic Control, RAF. Written off (damaged beyond repair) 13/1/1950: THe aircraft being flown by Pilot II Jan Walentowicz, overshot the landing strip at RAF Watchfield, Wiltshire when making a practice single-engine landing. The aircraft ran off the end of the landing strip and collided with some boulders.

The pilot - originally a Polish National who took up British Citizenship in June 1950 - was uninjured, and went on to continued service in the RAF, with distinction, until 1978 (ending up as the Commanding Officer of 202 Squadron, RAF Acklington, Northumberland, from May 1968) The relevant part of the pilots biography (he lived to the age of 90...) is as follows:

"Not yet ready to give up the active life, on 7th January 1948 he joined the RAF as a pilot and, on 13th July of that year, he was posted to Bomber Command Communication Flight at RAF Booker near High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire.

On 17th August [1948] he was posted to No 1 (P) Refresher Flying Unit on No 26 Course at RAF Finningley, Yorkshire and on 20th October [1948] he was posted to the School of Air Traffic Control at RAF Watchfield, Wiltshire as a staff pilot.

During 1950, he moved with the School to RAF Shawbury, Shropshire where he later completed the No 3 Staff Pilot's Course and was later posted to No 2 Officer Cadet Training Unit at RAF Kirton in Lindsey, Lincolnshire and completed No K4 Course there".

RAF Watchfield is a former Royal Air Force station which was located 7.2 miles (11.6 km) north east of Royal Wootton Bassett, Wiltshire, England.

The airfield opened in 1940 using grass runways and operated by the RAF until 1950, after which it was used by the army for parachute training and development of vehicle air drop with planes flying from RAF Abingdon and using the former airfield as a drop zone. In 1961 16 Parachute Heavy Drop company (RAOC) was formed there. This company moved to RAF Hullavington in February 1971 and the site was closed in 1972.

1. Halley, James (1999) Broken Wings – Post-War Royal Air Force Accidents Tunbridge Wells: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd. p.89 ISBN 0-85130-290-4.
2. Royal Air Force Aircraft SA100-VZ999 (James J Halley, Air Britain, 1983)
3. Last Take Off; A Catalogue of RAF Aircraft Losses 1950 to 1953 by Colin Cummings p.29
4. The Anson File (Ray Sturtivant, Air Britain, 1988)
5. http://www.ukserials.com/results.php?serial=VV
6. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RAF_Watchfield
7. Jan Walentowicz biography 1946-2011: https://304squadron.blogspot.com/2015/03/jan-walentowicz-post-war-life.html
8. PIlots Obituary 27-10-2011: https://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/2011/oct/27/jan-walentowicz-obituary
9. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/38981/page/3945/data.pdf

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
25-Sep-2020 22:08	Dr. John Smith	Added
28-Sep-2020 09:56	Harro	Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Operator]
05-May-2023 11:31	Nepa	Updated [[Aircraft type, Operator, Operator]]