Date:	Thursday 18 July 1946
Time:	day
Type:	Gloster Meteor F Mk 4
Owner/operator:	Gloster Aircraft Co. Ltd
Registration:	EE538
MSN:
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	Greendown Farm, Childrey, near Wantage, Berkshire, England -   United Kingdom
Phase:	En route
Nature:	Test
Departure airport:	RAF Moreton Valence, Gloucestershire
Destination airport:
Confidence Rating:	Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources

Narrative:
Gloster Meteor EE538, Gloster Aircraft Co Ltd: Written off (destroyed) 18 July 1946 when crashed on a pre-delivery test flight, at Greendown Farm, Childrey, near Wantage, Berkshire.

The pilot is reported to have taken off in bad weather, against the advice of ATC (Air Traffic Control). He had only four hours flying experience in Meteors, no rating on flying on instruments, and the aircraft had an unserviceable radio. Aircraft dived into the ground out of cloud. It was presumed that the pilot had lost control of his aircraft while flying in cloud.
Crew of Meteor EE538:
G/C (24067) Percy Frederick George BRADLEY (Pilot) RAF: Killed
R.I.P.

Childrey is a village and civil parish about 2+1⁄2 miles (4 km) west of Wantage in the Vale of White Horse. The parish was part of the Wantage Rural District in Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred the Vale of White Horse to Oxfordshire.

Note a) that the official Air Ministry report into the incident File AVIA 5/28/W2355 gives the crash location as "Langbourn" (sic). There is no such place in Berkshire, unless someone thought that they were referring to LAMBOURNE (a large village and civil parish in West Berkshire between Swindon and Newbury). Lambourne is some 6.3 miles to the south west

Note b) that Gloster Meteor F Mk 4s EE532 to EE548 (less, of course EE538) were all officially struck off charge on 19 June 1947 when sold to Argentina. Therefore, it is possible that, had it not crashed, EE538 would likewise, also have been sold to Argentina.

1. Halley, James (1999). Broken Wings – Post-War Royal Air Force Accidents. Tunbridge Wells: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd. p.47 ISBN 0-85130-290-4.
2. Royal Air Force Aircraft EA100-EZ999 (James J Halley, Air Britain, 1988 p 21)
3. Final Landings: A Summary of RAF Aircraft and Combat Losses 1946-1949 by Colin Cummings p.186
4. Air-Britain Royal Air Force Aircraft EA100-EZ999 (James J Halley, Air Britain)
5. "RAF Write-offs 1946": Air Britain Aeromilitaria 1979 p.103: https://air-britain.com/pdfs/aeromilitaria/Aeromilitaria_1979.pdf
6. National Archives (PRO Kew) File AVIA 5/28/W2355: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C6578201
7. https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/2436716/percy-frederick-george-bradley/
8. https://www.rafcommands.com/database/wardead/details.php?qnum=4878
9. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/56784880/percy-frederick-bradley
10. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Childrey
11. https://britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/101048742-greendown-farmhouse-childrey#.Xdh0SFf7TIU

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
22-Nov-2019 23:52	Dr. John Smith	Added
03-Feb-2022 04:30	angels one five	Updated [Operator, Source, Narrative]
03-Feb-2022 04:47	angels one five	Updated [Narrative]
17-Jun-2023 20:12	Nepa	Updated [[Narrative]]