Date:	Friday 20 February 1953
Time:	day
Type:	North American T.2B Harvard
Owner/operator:	7 FTS RAF
Registration:	FT440
MSN:	14A-1480
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	Deeping St. James, South Kesteven, Lincolnshire, England -   United Kingdom
Phase:	En route
Nature:	Training
Departure airport:	RAF Cottesmore, Oakham, Rutland
Destination airport:
Confidence Rating:	Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources

Narrative:
Noorduyn AT-16-ND ex-USAAF 43-13181 (MSN 14A-1480) Delivered to RAF as Harvard IIb FT440. To No 5 (Pilot) Advanced Flying Unit, Ternhill, Shropshire, September 1944. To No 21 Flying Training School, Snitterfield, Warwickshire June 1945. To No 7 Service Flying Training School, RAF Kirton-in-Lindsay, Lincolnshire from August 1946 coded "FBB-W". To No 7 Flying Training School January 1948 still as "FBB-W" and at Kirton-in-Lindsey. Moved with unit to RAF Cottesmore, Oakham, Rutland from April 1948 and re-coded "P-W"

Written off (destroyed) when crashed at Deeping St James, Lincolnshire 20 February 1953: the aircraft went out of control from an altitude of approximately 7,000 feet, and went into an unrecoverable dive. however, the reasons for the aircraft's "terminal dive" were never discovered. The pilot did not bail out and was killed

Crew of Harvard FT440:
Pilot Officer Alan Edward CRESWELL (pilot) RAF - killed in service 20/2/1953

The reported crash location of Deeping St James is a large village in the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England.

1. Halley, James (1999) Broken Wings – Post-War Royal Air Force Accidents Tunbridge Wells: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd. p.142 ISBN 0-85130-290-4.
2. Last Take-off: A Record of RAF Aircraft Losses 1950 to 1953 Colin Cummings p 342
3. The Harvard File (John F Hamlin, Air Britain, 1988 p 103
4. http://www.joebaugher.com/usaf_serials/1943_2.html
5. http://www.bcar.org.uk/1950s-incident-logs#1953
6. http://www.leicestershirewarmemorials.co.uk/war/casualty/view/29813
7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deeping_St_James
8. http://www.leicestershirewarmemorials.co.uk/war/memorials/view/1927

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
14-Apr-2021 17:36	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Time, Aircraft type, Registration, Cn, Operator, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Location, Country, Phase, Departure airport, Source, Narrative]
14-Apr-2021 17:48	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Date, Location, Source, Narrative]
14-Apr-2021 19:41	Harro	Updated [Operator, Location, Nature, Narrative, Operator]
18-Apr-2021 14:45	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Narrative]