Date:	Monday 19 February 1945
Time:	09:50 LT
Type:	Airspeed Oxford
Owner/operator:	1533 BAT Flt RAF
Registration:	HN311
MSN:
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	Thurlaston Grange, near Rugby, Warwickshire -   United Kingdom
Phase:	Landing
Nature:	Training
Departure airport:	RAF Church Lawford, Warwickshire
Destination airport:	RAF Church Lawford, Warwickshire

Narrative:
Airspeed AS.10 Oxford HN311 from 1533 BAT Flight, based at RAF Church Lawford outside Rugby, Warwickshire The instructor, Warrant Officer Frank Needham and his student Sgt Eric Kershaw died when their aircraft struck trees near Thurlaston Grange, Warwickshire. The weather was poor with a low cloud base and poor visibility and the accident site was on the extended centre line to Church Lawford, the aircraft had struck one of the numerous Elm trees Warwickshire was famous for. From the weather records of the day they were caught out by a deterioration in the weather. Fog settled across RAF Church Lawford near Rugby with visibility down to 1,800 feet.

Crew:
Warrant Officer (659072) Frank NEEDHAM (pilot) RAF - killed
Sgt (1588318) Eric KERSHAW (pupil) RAFVR - killed

1. Commonwealth War Graves Commision and RAF accident record card for HN311
2. https://www.pprune.org/military-aviation/329990-gaining-r-f-pilots-brevet-ww-ii-379.html
3. http://www.leicestershirewarmemorials.co.uk/war/casualty/view/15603
4. https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2718796/NEEDHAM,%20FRANK
5. http://www.loughborough-rollofhonour.com/page81.htm
6. http://www.rafcommands.com/forum/showthread.php?17960-450219-Unaccounted-Airmen-19-02-1945&styleid=3
7. [LINK NOT WORKING ANYMORE:http://www.baaa-acro.com/1945/archives/crash-of-an-airspeed-as-10-oxford-in-coventry-2-killed/]

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
20-May-2008 13:13	Nepa	Added
24-May-2012 02:13	Nepa	Updated [Operator, Departure airport, Narrative]
06-May-2013 06:50	Nepa	Updated [Operator, Narrative]
18-Feb-2015 13:01	Greg65	Updated [Time, Source, Narrative]
28-Jul-2017 16:39	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Time, Operator, Departure airport, Source, Narrative]
31-Jul-2017 17:55	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Location, Destination airport, Source, Narrative]
06-Nov-2018 21:20	Nepa	Updated [Operator, Operator]