Date:	Thursday 18 December 1947
Time:	day
Type:	Gloster Meteor F Mk III
Owner/operator:	56 (Punjab) Sqn RAF
Registration:	EE364
MSN:
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	east of Eindhoven, Noord Brabant -   Netherlands
Phase:	En route
Nature:	Military
Departure airport:	Eindhoven airfield, Netherlands
Destination airport:	Eindhoven, NL

Narrative:
Gloster Meteor F.III EE364: Delivered to 124 Squadron, RAF Molesworth, Cambridgeshire 31.8.45 coded 'ON-D'; On 31-3-46, the No. 56 (Punjab) Squadron nameplate was transferred over to No. 16 Squadron. No. 56 (Fighter) Squadron then reformed the next day, 1-4-46, at RAF Bentwaters when No. 124 Squadron was renumbered. Upon their reformation, the Firebirds converted to their first jet fighter, the Gloster Meteor F.3. No. 56 (F) Squadron left RAF Bentwaters on 16-9-46, moving to RAF Boxted, Essex. They remained here before relocating on 10-11-46 to RAF Acklington, eventually moving on to RAF Wattisham on 20-12-56. No. 56 (F) Squadron moved on to RAF Duxford on 17-4-47 staying there until 31-8-47 before returning once again on 30-11-47, where they would last until 2-2-48. The squadron upgraded to the Meteor F.4 in August 1948.

Written off (damaged beyond repair) 18.12.47 when Overshot GCA (Ground Controlled Approach) landing and undercarriage raised to stop, Eindhoven; the pilot failed to return to base when the weather 'closed in' (deteriorated). He was compelled to make a forced landing east of Eindhoven, Noord Brabant, Netherlands when the fuel ran out, and both engines failed due to fuel exhaustion.

For the pilot the incident had decidedly "mixed" results; on the one hand, he was commended for his skillful handling of the situation. On the other hand, he was 'reproved' (reprimanded) for allowing the situation to occur in the first place!

Damage initially assessed as Cat B; re-cat E 24.12.48 by 1 BRSU and Struck Off Charge

1. Halley, James (1999) Broken Wings – Post-War Royal Air Force Accidents Tunbridge Wells: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd. ISBN 0-85130-290-4.
2. Final Landings: A Summary of RAF Aircraft and Combat Losses 1946-1949 p.356 by Colin Cummings
3. 56 Sqn RAF ORB for the period 1-4-1946 to 31-12-1950: National Archives (PRO Kew) File AIR27/2423/1: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/D8420014
4. Royal Air Force Aircraft EA100-EZ999 (James J Halley, Air Britain)
5. Air Britain Aeromilitaria Summer 2009: https://air-britain.com/pdfs/aeromilitaria/Aeromilitaria_2009.pdf p.73
6. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No._56_Squadron_RAF#Early_Cold_War_(1946%E2%80%931960)
7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eindhoven_Airport#Early_years

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
05-May-2023 14:04	Dr. John Smith	Added
05-May-2023 16:25	Nepa	Updated