Date:	Sunday 21 October 1951
Time:	night
Type:	North American AT-16 Harvard T.2B
Owner/operator:	6 FTS RAF
Registration:	KF564
MSN:	14A-2365
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 2
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	north of RAF Pershore, Throckmorton, Worcestershire, England -   United Kingdom
Phase:	En route
Nature:	Training
Departure airport:	RAF Tern Hill, Shropshire
Destination airport:
Confidence Rating:	Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources

Narrative:
North American AT-16 Harvard T.2B KF564. No former USAAF Serial. First recorded in service in April 1945 with 2 FIS, RAF Montrose, Scotland. To 7 FIS RAF Little Rissington, Gloucestershire, from July 1945. To CFS (Central Flying School) RAF Little Rissington, Gloucestershire from May 1946 as "FDN-D". To 6 FTS, RAF Tern Hill, Shropshire from December 1949. Breifly with the CFS at Little Rissington again for two months (January and February 1950) before returning to 6 FTS Charge at RAF Tern Hill.

Written off (destroyed) 21 October 1951: The engine cut out several times in flight during a night navigation training sortie. The fuel tanks were changed over to ensure consistent fuel flow, but the engine stopped, and could not be restarted. The instructor ordered the student pilot to bail out; this he did when the aircraft was at an altitude of 1,000 feet, and he parachuted safely to earth. The Instructor pilot, however, dealyed his exit, stayed with the aircraft until it was at a very low altitude. Thus, when he bailed out, his parachute did not deploy fully before he landed, and he was seriously injured. The Harvard came to earth north of RAF Pershore, Throckmorton, Worcestershire

Crew of Harvard KF564:
Officer Cadet I H Donaldson (Student pilot under instruction) RAF - bailed out at 1,000 feet, survived uninjured
Flying Officer (161586) Douglas William Bennett, RAF (QFI Instructor Pilot) - bailed out at low level, injured

Two days after the above incident, on 23 October 1951, Flying Officer Douglas William Bennett was promoted to the rank of Flight Lieutenant (retrospectively to 1 October 1951). (See link #5). However, he relinquished his commission on 28 July 1955 upon enlistment to the Royal Canadian Air Force (see link #6)

1. Halley, James (1999) Broken Wings – Post-War Royal Air Force Accidents Tunbridge Wells: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd. p.118 ISBN 0-85130-290-4.
2. The Harvard File (John F Hamlin, Air Britain, 1988, p.130)
3. Last Take Off; A Catalogue of RAF Aircraft Losses 1950 to 1953 by Colin Cummings p.184
4. http://www.aviationarchaeology.org.uk/marg/crashes1950-88.htm
5. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/39364/supplement/5500/data.pdf
6. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/40599/supplement/5570/data.pdf
7. http://www.rafcommands.com/database/awards/details.php?srname=V%20B&qname=BENNETT
8. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Throckmorton,_Worcestershire#QinetiQ_Pershore

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
12-Feb-2021 22:59	Dr. John Smith	Added
13-Feb-2021 09:11	Digger	Updated [Operator, Location, Narrative, Operator]