Date:	Monday 11 May 1953
Time:	night
Type:	de Havilland DH.113 Vampire NF Mk 10
Owner/operator:	23 Sqn RAF
Registration:	WM722
MSN:	13070
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 2
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	Whittlesey, 6 miles E of Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England -   United Kingdom
Phase:	En route
Nature:	Military
Departure airport:	RAF Coltishall, Norfolk
Destination airport:	RAF Coltishall, Norfolk
Confidence Rating:	Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources

Narrative:
De Havilland DH.113 Vampire NF.10 WM722, 23 Squadron, RAF: Built at DeHavilland at Harwarden, Chester, and delivered 6/5/1952. Written off (damaged beyond repair) 11/5/53; Pilot landed aircraft wheels-up in a wheat field at Whittlesey, 6 miles east of Peterborough, Cambridgeshire during a night flying sortie from RAF Coltishall, Norfolk. The cause of the incident was deemed to be engine failure, but the two crew were not injured.

Vampire WM722 was a write off, and deemed "damaged beyond economic repair"; it was Struck off Charge as Cat.5(s) on 30/5/1953, being broken up at No.58 MU RAF Honington, Suffolk, for spares and scrap.

1. Halley, James (1999) Broken Wings – Post-War Royal Air Force Accidents Tunbridge Wells: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd. p.145 ISBN 0-85130-290-4.
2. Last Take-off: A Record of RAF Aircraft Losses 1950 to 1953 by Colin Cummings p 375
3. Royal Air Force Aircraft WA100-WZ999 (James J Halley, Air Britain, 1983 p 71)
4. 23 Squadron RAF ORB (perational Records Book)(Air Ministry Fporm AM/F.540) for the period 1/1/1951 to 31/12/1955: National Archives (PRO Kew) File AIR 27/2603/1 at https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/D8423807
5. http://www.ukserials.com/results.php?serial=WM
6. http://www.airhistory.org.uk/dh/_DH113%20prodn%20list.txt
7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whittlesey

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
27-Apr-2021 23:13	Dr. John Smith	Added
28-Apr-2021 10:27	Coumes	Updated [Operator, Location, Operator]