ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 14895
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| Date: | Saturday 31 August 1940 |
| Time: | night |
| Type: |  Bristol Blenheim Mk I |
| Owner/operator: | 60 Sqn RAF |
| Registration: | L1545 |
| MSN: | |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 3 / Occupants: 3 |
| Aircraft damage: | Aircraft missing |
| Location: | Missing - Bay of Bengal -
 India
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | RAF Dum Dum, Calcutta |
Bristol Blenheim Mk.I L1545, 60 Squadron, RAF: Written off (presumed destroyed) when lost (Failed To Return) on night of 30-31st August 1940: Missing on night shipping patrol. All three crew likewise posted as "missing presumed killed". According to the official Air Ministry file into the incident: "aircraft accident, Bay of Bengal, Blenheim L1545, 60 Squadron, 30 August 1940. Sergeant R J Tompkins, Sergeant R Heseltine, Aircraftman W A Ayres: missing believed killed"
Took off from RAF Dum Dum, Calcutta on 30 August 1940 for night shipping patrol in Bay of Bengal. Failed to return, aircraft and all three crew presumed lost the next day.
Crew of Blenheim L1545
Sergeant Reginald John Tompkins (Pilot) RAF 565827, age 26 - posted as missing presumed killed in action 31/08/1940
Sergeant Richard Heseltine (Observer) RAF 563144, age 27 - posted as missing presumed killed in action 31/08/1940
Aircraftman William Arthur Ayres (Wireless Op./Air Gunner) - posted as missing presumed killed in action 31/08/1940
As no trace of Blenheim L1545 or its crew of three was ever found, they are all commemorated on the Singapore Memorial
Sources:
1. Royal Air Force Aircraft L1000-L9999 (James J Halley, Air Britain, 1978)
2. National Archives (PRO Kew) File AIR 81/2961: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C16472459
3. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/1816440/tompkins,-reginald-john/
4. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/1814931/heseltine,-richard/
5. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/1813804/ayres,-william-arthur/
6. http://www.oldhaltonians.co.uk/pages/rememb/ROH/H.htm
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 29-Feb-2008 13:31 | JINX | Added |
| 15-Mar-2012 11:23 | Nepa | Updated [Operator, Phase] |
| 20-Aug-2013 18:36 | JINX | Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Source] |
| 15-Dec-2014 17:25 | Jixon | Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Location] |
| 09-Oct-2018 16:49 | Nepa | Updated [Operator, Operator] |
| 13-Oct-2019 18:32 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Time, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Other fatalities, Departure airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 30-Nov-2021 00:10 | Ron Averes | Updated [Country, Damage] |
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