Date:	Thursday 27 September 1956
Time:	night
Type:	De Havilland DH.112 Venom NF.2
Owner/operator:	253 (Hyderabad) Sqn RAF
Registration:	WL832
MSN:
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	near Wilburton, 6 miles West-South West of Ely, Cambridgeshire -   United Kingdom
Phase:	En route
Nature:	Military
Departure airport:	Waterbeach
Destination airport:
Confidence Rating:	Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources

Narrative:
De Havilland DH.112 Venom NF.Mk.2 WL832: Delivered 3/1/54. Sole RAF career was with 253 (Hyderabad) Squadron, RAF

Written off (destroyed) 27/9/56: the aircraft took off from RAF Waterbeach, Cambridgeshire, for a practice interception exercise. The aircraft was seen to be climbing straight ahead to an altitude of approximately 450 feet, and then turn to starboard. The aircraft was next seen diving vertically into the ground, inverted, and exploding on impact with the ground, killing both crew. Although there were several theories as to the cause of the crash, the Board of Inquiry could not establish a definite cause "beyond all reasonable doubt"

Crew of Venom WL832:
Flying Officer Terrence O'Hare RAF (pilot, aged 29)
Sergeant John James O'Brien RAF (navigator, aged 32)

Note that most sources give the crash location as near Wilburton, 6 miles West-South West of Ely, Cambridgeshire, However, the official Air Ministry files into the incident at the National Archives (Files BT233/326 and File AVIA 5/35/S2837 - see links #3 & #4) give the crash location as "near Waterbeach, Cambridgeshire"

1. Halley, James (1999) Broken Wings – Post-War Royal Air Force Accidents Tunbridge Wells: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd. p.183 ISBN 0-85130-290-4.
2. Royal Air Force Aircraft WA100-WZ999 (James J Halley, Air Britain, 1983 p 76)
3. National Archives (PRO Kew) File BT233/356: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C424477
4. National Archives (PRO Kew) File AVIA 5/35/S2837: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C6578617
5. http://www.ukserials.com/results.php?serial=WL
6. http://www.airhistory.org.uk/dh/_DH112%20prodn%20list.txt
7. http://www.ukserials.com/losses-1956.htm
8. http://www.planetrace.co.uk/1950-1959_26.html
9. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilburton

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
20-Jan-2020 20:28	Dr. John Smith	Added
20-Jan-2020 22:02	stehlik49	Updated [Operator, Operator]
11-Jul-2020 22:36	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Location, Source, Narrative]