Date:	Friday 4 April 1941
Time:	night
Type:	Armstrong Whitworth Whitley Mk V
Owner/operator:	77 Sqn RAF
Registration:	Z6583
MSN:
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 3 / Occupants: 5
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	Eartham Wood, 6 miles North East of Chichester, Sussex, England -   United Kingdom
Phase:	En route
Nature:	Military
Departure airport:	RAF Topcliffe, North Yorkshire
Destination airport:	RAF Tangmere, Chichester, West Sussex

Narrative:
On 3 April 1941 Armstrong Whitworth A.W.38 Whitley V Z6583/KN-T of 77 Squadron took off from RAF Topcliffe, North Yorkshire, at 19:01 local time to carry out a bombing raid on Brest, France. This was accomplished successfully and on their return the Whitley's crew were ordered to divert to RAF Tangmere, Chichester, Sussex.

It is believed that, in the early hours of the morning of 4 April 1941, whilst the pilot of the Whitley thought he was in the circuit over RAF Tangmere, in fact he was over the 'Starfish' Q decoy airfield at Gumber and became disorientated when, suddenly, the Gumber lights were extinguished. As a result the Whitley crashed just away from the Q site at Eartham Woods. Of the five crew, three were killed and two were injured.

Crew of Whitley Z6583:
Sergeant Harold Joseph Dowling, RAF (Pilot, Service Number 754022, aged 20) - killed, buried at Hull Northern Cemetery, Hull, East Yorkshire
Pilot Officer Geoffrey Moir Bussy, RAF (Pilot, Service Number 88867, aged 25) - killed, buried at West Norwood Cemetery, London
Sergeant William George Rawkins, RAF (Observer, Service Number 900862) - killed, buried at South Ealing Cemetery, Ealing, London
Sergeant E.C.Pryor RAF (Wop/Air Gunner) - survived but injured
Sergeant A.R.Keseon, RAF - survived but injured

1. The Whitley File (R.N.Roberts, Air Britain, 1986, p.39)
2. National Archives (PRO Kew) File AIR 81/5681: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C16689779
3. Middlesex County Times - Saturday 19 April 1941
4. Hull Daily Mail - Monday 7 April 1941 (death announcement and funeral notice)
5. https://slindonatwarmyblog.wordpress.com/crashed-ww2-planes-gumber-airfield/
6. https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/2429363/geoffrey-moir-bussy/
7. https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/2402340/harold-joseph-dowling/
8. https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/2430375/willlam-george-rawkins/
9. http://www.rafcommands.com/database/serials/details.php?uniq=Z6583
10. https://sussexhistoryforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=20468.0
11. https://getoutside.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/local/eartham-wood-chichester

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