ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 281856
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| Date: | Tuesday 8 September 1942 |
| Time: | |
| Type: |  Supermarine Spitfire MkIa |
| Owner/operator: | 53 OTU |
| Registration: | X4174 |
| MSN: | |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Location: | Llantrisant, Vale of Glamorgan. -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Training |
| Departure airport: | RAF Llandow |
| Return. |
Details:
First Flew on the 11th of August 1940 and received by the RAF at 24MU on the 13th. The first posting was to No.266 (Rhodesia) squadron on the 17th of August at RAF Wittering where the squadron were sent for a rest after the Battle of Britain. Along with eight other Spitfires which replaced the losses, bringing the squadron back to operational strength. X4174 flew on her first operational Dawn patrol flown by F/Lt D. L. Armitage, then again on the 30th at dusk, this time to investigate enemy aircraft over Nottingham at 15,000 feet. Her last patrol happened on the 7th of September flown by P/O Trousdale to patrol Norwich at 25,000ft. Tally Ho was called but due to dazzle the enemy aircraft twice lost sight of. The squadron intercepted and made a surprise attack with the E/A making no evasive action. One of the Spitfires reported receiving Cannon fire from the rear? After more attacks which took them over the sea, black smoke was seen coming from a starboard engine of one of the E/A, now identified as being Dornier 215’s. One was seen to go into a vertical dive approximately ten miles away and crashing into the centre of Walscheren Island on the coast of Holland. In the afternoon, five Spitfires including X4174 left for 616 squadron and issued the radio codes ‘GJ-A’.
Life here, with 616 squadron, based at RAF Cotishall was to be none the quieter! Almost immediately, she was thrown into combat over the Thames Estuary against 50 plus E/A and 109’s, sadly the squadron Tail-End-Charlie was ‘Bounced’! He managed to crash-land but died in hospital later. X4174 was involved with the shooting down of a Dornier which crashed into the Estuary. Much of the same action followed and then on the 5th of November she was in the hands of F/Lt C.A.T. Jones who was tasked for a solo patrol. P/O Jones took off at 17:00hrs to patrol Spurnhead at 17:10hrs. Jones, who was Red Leader vectored at various heights until se sighted a lone He-111 at 6,500ft. He engaged and nearly fired off his ammunition after three, four second bursts, as he banked away to avoid hitting the E/A he received enemy return fire, hitting him in his right arm. The wounds proved to be nothing more than a flesh wound but it proved that Jones now had only the use of one arm to fly back and land! He successfully landed X4174, although a heavy landing which damaged X4174 which sustained a damaged undercarriage and damaging the Starboard mainplane. As for the Heinkel, it was proved to have crashed into the Humber Estuary over eighty miles to the north. Only two bodies were pulled from the water. Such was the vast distances of air combat during the Battle of Britain, the two confirmed E/A shot down by X4174 are both over fifty miles from the operating base.
X4174 had to go off for repair and subsequently returned to front line duties with No.65 squadron on the 26th of February 1941. Soon with the new Spitfire V’s coming on to squadron strength she was off and then did a tour of the 300 squadrons, starting with 308 on the 16th of April, 303 on the 21st of July (Codes being ‘RF-V’). Finally, 306 on the 6th 0f October 1941.
Redundant from front line duties she entered the final phase of her career coming to 57 OTU on the 10th of January 1942 at Hawarden. Until finally coming to 53 OTU on the 11th of August 1942. Only the following month she was being flown by Sgt Sherwood who was tasked in aerobatic flying. He was seen from the ground to just spin into the ground, impacting a mile Northeast of Llantrisant in the Vale of Glamorgan.
Crew:
Sgt Harry Sherwood 22yo 1246518 RAFVR. Pilot. Killed.
Son of Harry and Margaret Sherwood, of Hurst Green.
Buried:
Birmingham (Quinton) Cemetery, Warley.Grave 5751. FC.
Wreckage:
Exact location not known to me!
Memorials:
Battle of Britain Memorial.
CWGC memorial (Sherwood has a private grave).
German crew at Cannock Chase.
Additional Information:
Cyril Arthur Trevor Jones was born in Burnley in 1914 and joined the RAF in January 1936 as a direct-entry Airman u/t Pilot, he began his initial training course on the 6th of January.
He was serving with 66 Squadron at Duxford when commissioned on the 1st of April 1940. He left 66 on 14th April and joined 611 Squadron at Digby on the 17th. On 2nd June he probably damaged a Me109 over Dunkirk. On the 4th Jones was detached to AFDU Northolt for an Air Fighting course. On the 29th of August 1940, as an Acting Flight Lieutenant, Jones was posted to 312 Squadron as a Flight Commander. The squadron was formed on that day at Duxford. He moved to 616 Squadron at Kenley on the 4th of September again as a Flight Commander. Here, Jones was badly wounded in the right elbow by return fire from a He111 engaged off Spurn Head on the 5th of November 1940. He returned safely to RAF Kirton-in-Lindsey and was admitted to Scunthorpe Hospital. The enemy aircraft crashed into the Humber.
From February 1942 until February 1944 Jones commanded 79 Squadron, mostly in India. On the 15th of December 1942 he destroyed a Japanese Army Type 99 bomber and damaged another. Jones was awarded the DFC (gazetted 14th April 1944) and was released from the RAF in 1946 as a Wing Commander. He later went to live in Australia and died there in the early 2000s.
Sources:
www.bbm.org.uk
www.nationalarchives.gov.uk
www.rafcommands.com
www.airhistory.org.uk
www.findagrave.com
www.cwgc.co.uk
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 22-Aug-2022 05:50 | Davies 62 | Added |
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