Date:	Friday 5 July 1946
Time:	day
Type:	Supermarine Spitfire LF Mk IX
Owner/operator:	32 Sqn RAF
Registration:	MJ393
MSN:	CBAF.
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	RAF Ramat David, 4 km south of Ramat Yishay, Palestine -   Israel
Phase:	Take off
Nature:	Military
Departure airport:	RAF Ramat David, Palestine
Destination airport:
Confidence Rating:	Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources

Narrative:
MJ393: Spitfire LF. IX. Built by CBAF (Castle Bromwich Aircraft Factory) with Merlin M66 engine. To 9MU RAF Cosford, Shropshire 3-11-43. To 83GSU 26-8-44. To 401 Squadron 21-9-44. To 412 Squadron 3-10-44. Cat. C accident, repaired on site. To 453 Squadron 26-10-44. To MAAF (Mediterranean Allied Air Forces) 25-5-45. To Middle East Air Command 23-8-45. To 32 Squadron, RAF Ramat David, 4 km south of Ramat Yishay, Palestine later in 1945 coded "GZ-E"

Written off (damaged beyond repair) 5-7-46: engine failed on takeoff at RAF Ramat David, 4 km south of Ramat Yishay, Palestine. Just as the aircraft became airborne on the takeoff run, the engine lost power. The pilot reacted by closing the throttle, but did not raise the undercarriage, as he believed that he had sufficient time to stop the aircraft before he "ran out of runway". He also believed that the runway at Ramat David was longer than it actually was, and extended beyond the perimeter track. However, the Spitfire ran off the end of the runway at Ramat David, into soft ground, and overturned.

The subsequent Board of Inquiry attributed the accident to pilot error, in that the pilot had failed to tighten the throttle friction nut, and that the throttle lever had slipped back during the takeoff run, unnoticed by the pilot

Damage assessed as Cat E 5-7-46. Not repaired, and Struck Off Charge 29-8-46 as Cat. E2(FA)

RAF Ramat David was a Royal Air Force station in the British Mandate of Palestine between 1942 and 1948, located approximately 4 km south of Ramat Yishay (Northern District) 80 km north-northeast of Tel Aviv.

1. Halley, James (1999). Broken Wings – Post-War Royal Air Force Accidents. Tunbridge Wells: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd. ISBN 0-85130-290-4.
2. Final Landings: A Summary of RAF Aircraft and Combat Losses 1946 to 1949 by Colin Cummings p.178
3. Royal Air Force Aircraft MA100-MZ999 (James J Halley, Air Britain)
4. 32 Sqn RAF ORB for the period 1-1-1946 to 31-12-1950: National Archives (PRO Kew) File AIR27/2409/1: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/D8674237
5. "RAF Write-offs 1946": Air Britain Aeromilitaria 1979 p.101: https://air-britain.com/pdfs/aeromilitaria/Aeromilitaria_1979.pdf
6. http://www.airhistory.org.uk/spitfire/p066.html
7. https://allspitfirepilots.org/aircraft/MJ393
8. https://www.avialogs.com/spitfire-and-seafire-registry/item/85253-mj393
9. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No._32_Squadron_RAF#Post-war
10. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramat_David_Airbase#RAF_Ramat_David

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
18-Jun-2023 20:19	Dr. John Smith	Added
18-Jun-2023 20:57	Nepa	Updated
15-Sep-2023 11:25	Dr. John Smith	Updated