This information is added by users of ASN. Neither ASN nor the Flight Safety Foundation are responsible for the completeness or correctness of this information.
If you feel this information is incomplete or incorrect, you can
submit corrected information.
Date: | Thursday 6 July 1944 |
Time: | |
Type: | de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito NF Mk II |
Owner/operator: | 13 OTU RAF |
Registration: | DZ698 |
MSN: | |
Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
Other fatalities: | 4 |
Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
Location: | Central Avenue Fartown Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England -
United Kingdom
|
Phase: | En route |
Nature: | Training |
Departure airport: | RAF Finmere, Oxfordshire |
Destination airport: | |
Narrative:Mosquito DZ698: Took off for a training flight involving flying and landing on one engine. 06/07/1944
The pilot / instrutor 13 OTU was the sole occupant of the aircraft, opted not to carrout this exercise but to fly to Huddersfield. His parents and newly married wife lived in Fartown. Once over the Huddersfield area he became a series of passes at low level over the Fartown area. While making an aerobatic manoeuvre he lost control and the Mosquito crashed into housing on the corner of West Close and Central Avenue, Fartown. Unfortunately people were in the houses at the time and as well as the pilot being killed four civilians died. A further lady seated in her garden suffered minor burns. in Central Avenue Fartown Huddersfield Yorks.
Crew:
F/Lt (89841) Ernest Robert James BLEZARD (pilot) RAFVR - killed
Pilot he was from Huddersfield was killed doinng stunts over his parents house in Blackhouse Road when he lost control and crashed on the junction of West Close and Central Avenue, Fartown, Huddersfield killing the four people.
51 Central Avenue was destroyed, another adjoining house, 61 West Close was severely damaged.
Mosquito DZ698 was seen circling the area, appearing to dip a wing to one side, flipped over onto its back and plunged to earth. The aircraft it explode in a ball of flames on impact.
Pilot killed served in Canada as a Flying Instructor. Eight weeks before the crash he returned home and married local girl , Kathleen Grogan , on the 16th May 1944 at St.Brigid’s Church, Longwood.
Four other people died in the crash they were residents of the houses. They were, Mrs Flora May Dorothy Leighton (40) and her two year old son, Rodney Bracken Leighton of 51 Central Avenue. Mrs Henrietta Victoria Udell (64) of 61 West Close and Private Leslie Roy Littlewood, of the Royal Army Service Corps.
Sources:
1.http://www.airhistory.org.uk/dh/_DH98%20prodn%20list.txtt
2.http://www.yorkshire-aircraft.co.uk/aircraft/yorkshire/york44/dz698.html
3.https://www.flickr.com/photos/pasujoba44/5306718968/
4.https://huddersfield.exposed/wiki/Ernest_Robert_James_Blezard_(1919-1944)
5.https://huddersfield.exposed/wiki/RAF_Mosquito_DZ698
Revision history:
Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
21-Jan-2010 06:25 |
NePa |
Added |
29-Feb-2012 23:54 |
Nepa |
Updated [Departure airport, Source, Narrative] |
06-Oct-2013 08:27 |
Nepa |
Updated [Aircraft type, Departure airport, Narrative] |
18-Aug-2014 10:29 |
R.Giggs |
Updated [Location, Departure airport, Narrative] |
18-Aug-2014 10:36 |
Giggs |
Updated [Narrative] |
17-Aug-2015 10:54 |
Nepa |
Updated [Aircraft type, Narrative] |
20-May-2021 09:56 |
Xindel |
Updated [Source, Narrative, Operator] |
29-Nov-2021 20:02 |
Nepa |
Updated [Source, Narrative, Operator] |
15-Jan-2022 19:56 |
Nepa |
Updated [Other fatalities, Departure airport, Narrative, Operator] |