ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 141356
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| Date: | Friday 17 May 1940 |
| Time: | day |
| Type: |  Bristol Blenheim Mk IV |
| Owner/operator: | 82 (United Provinces) Sqn RAF |
| Registration: | P4851 |
| MSN: | UX-N |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 3 |
| Aircraft damage: | Aircraft missing |
| Location: | Missing near Gembloux, Namur -
 Belgium
|
| Phase: | Combat |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | RAF Watton, Norfolk |
| RAF Watton, Norfolk |
On 17th May, 1940, twelve aircraft of 82 Squadron, based at Watton, in Norfolk, took off to attack troop concentrations at Gembloux, Belgium, where the German army was sweeping West towards the Channel ports.
They were supposed to have a Hurricane fighter escort but they were intercepted before the escort could arrive and they had to proceed without their escorts. As they reached their target, 15 German Bf-109 fighters attacked them.
Eleven of them were shot down and the sole survivor (L8858, UX-W), badly damaged, managed to reach Watton, but it was written off due to the damage sustained.
Blenheim P4851 was airborne at 04:50 hrs from RAF Watton, Norfolk. Hit by Flak and abandoned, two of the three crew were killed. No confirmed location of where the Blenheim came down - P4851 was simply posted as "missing". The official Air Ministry file on the incident (File AIR 81/392): "Blenheim P4851 crashed in France, 17 May 1940. Sergeant F Fearnley and Corporal A G Richards, missing, presumed dead. Flying Officer D A Fordham, safe".
Crew of Blenheim P4851:
Sergeant Frank Fearnley, RAF 580369, age 24, missing in action, presumed dead 17/05/1940
Flying Officer D.A. Fordham, survived, evaded capture
Corporal Allen Glyndwr Richards, RAF 551007, DFM, age 20, missing in action, presumed dead 17/05/1940
Flying Officer Fordham was reported safe, but his crew are commemorated on the Runnymede Memorial (as there was no confirmed trace of the aircraft or two of the crew was ever found). Later in the day, [17/05/1940] the London Gazette published the news of Corporal Richards award of the DFM.
Sources:
1. Royal Air Force Aircraft P1000-P9999 (James J Halley, Air Britain, 1977 p 26)
2. National Archives (PRO Kew) File Air 81/392): https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C14502279
3. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/1269885/fearnley,-frank/
4. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2940145/richards,-allen-glyndwr/
5. http://francecrashes39-45.net/page_fiche_av.php?id=7305
6. http://www.epibreren.com/ww2/raf/82_squadron.html
7. http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/showpost.php?p=190820&postcount=3
8. http://ww2talk.com/index.php?threads/raf-losses-may-1940-an-update.16940/page-9#post-197165
9. http://www.theygavetheirtoday.com/baildon.html
History of this aircraft
Other occurrences involving this aircraft
| 16 October 1939 | L1141 | 57 Sqn RAF | 0 | near Lingen, Ems, Niedersachsen |  |
w/o |
| 8 June 1940 | R3618 | 82 (United Provinces) Sqn RAF | 1 | Éplessier, 3 km NW of Poix-de-Picardie, Somme, Hauts de France |  |
w/o |
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 02-Jan-2012 10:05 | Uli Elch | Added |
| 16-Jul-2019 20:01 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Time, Cn, Operator, Other fatalities, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 17-Jul-2019 13:38 | stehlik49 | Updated [Operator] |
| 29-Jul-2019 00:06 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Operator] |
| 29-Jul-2019 00:09 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Operator] |
| 29-Jul-2019 11:51 | stehlik49 | Updated [Operator] |
| 10-Nov-2022 07:58 | Ron Averes | Updated [Location] |
| 13-Nov-2022 01:56 | Ron Averes | Updated [Location] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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