Date:	Sunday 7 February 1954
Time:	day
Type:	Hawker Sea Hawk F.1
Owner/operator:	806 NAS FAA RN
Registration:	WF171
MSN:
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	Mediterranean Sea, off HMS Eagle -   Spain
Phase:	Initial climb
Nature:	Military
Departure airport:	HMS Eagle, Atlantic Ocean, off coast of Portugal
Destination airport:
Confidence Rating:	Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources

Narrative:
Hawker Sea Hawk F.Mk.1 WF171, 806 Squadron, Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm. Written off (destroyed) when crashed into the Mediterranean Sea off HMS Eagle. According to one published source (see link #1):

"Transition [to the Sea Hawk] did not progress without the inevitable accident, the first occurring on 7 February 1954, when Lt Derek Monsell was obliged to eject from Sea Hawk WF171 whilst flying from HMS Eagle. He was rescued safely from the Mediterranean"

As a clue to the whereabouts of HMS Eagle at this time it is known that the aircraft carrier docked at Mers el Kebir, Oran, Algeria on 26 February 1954.

1. 806 Naval Air Squadron: The FAA's Top-Scoring Fighter Squadron of the Second World War By Brian Cull, Frederick Galea.
2. http://web.archive.org/web/20160423024448/http://www.ejection-history.org.uk:80/Aircraft_by_Type/SeaHawk.htm
3. http://www.ukserials.com/results.php?serial=WF

No photo found of Sea Hawk WF171. Below is Sea Hawk F.1 WF174 on HMS Eagle on 01/02/54: NAVY'S LATEST FIGHTERS EMBARK IN HMS EAGLE. 1 FEBRUARY 1954, ON BOARD THE AIRCRAFT CARRIER HMS EAGLE IN THE ENGLISH CHANNEL. NO 806 SQUADRON OF SEA HAWK JET FIGHTERS EMBARKED IN HMS EAGLE, THE FIRST TIME A SQUADRON OF SEA HAWKS WAS AFLOAT OPERATIONALLY. © IWM (A 32829)

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
13-Mar-2013 20:22	Dr. John Smith	Added
08-May-2013 18:33	Nepa	Updated [Operator]
29-Sep-2013 18:07	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Location, Country, Departure airport, Source, Narrative]
30-Sep-2013 19:05	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Narrative]
23-Oct-2015 18:28	TB	Updated [Operator, Location, Phase, Departure airport, Source, Narrative]
02-Jan-2020 23:42	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Time, Operator, Location, Country, Phase, Departure airport, Source, Embed code, Narrative]
02-Jan-2020 23:43	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Embed code]
03-Jan-2020 08:39	stehlik49	Updated [Operator, Operator]