Date:	Friday 25 July 1947
Time:
Type:	North American Harvard T.2B
Owner/operator:	1 FTS RAF
Registration:	KF579
MSN:	14A-2280
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	RAF Spitalgate, Grantham, Lincolnshire, England -   United Kingdom
Phase:	Take off
Nature:	Military
Departure airport:	RAF Spitalgate, Lincolnshire
Destination airport:	RAF Spitalgate, Lincolnshire

Narrative:
North American Harvard KF579 [MSN 14A-2280], 1 FTS, RAF: Written off (destroyed) 25-7-47 in a takeoff accident at RAF Spitalgate, Grantham, Lincolnshire

During the takeoff run from RAF Spitalgate, the engine began cutting out intermittently, probably due to a lack of compression in several of the cylinders of the engine. The pilot abandoned the takeoff, closed the throttle, and attempted to stop the aircraft, after having landed straight ahead. However, the aircraft did not stop in time to prevent it from running through the boundary fence, and colliding with a hedge.

After the Second World War, 1 FTS was briefly reconstituted by the renaming of No. 17 Service Flying Training School RAF (17 SFTS) on 18-6-47 at RAF Spitalgate. The school had RLGs (Relief Landing Ground) at RAF Folkingham between 28-7-47 and 31-8-47, and at RAF Bottesford after that; it was disbanded again on 25-2-48.

1. Halley, James (1999) Broken Wings – Post-War Royal Air Force Accidents Tunbridge Wells: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd. ISBN 0-85130-290-4.
2. Last Take Off; A Catalogue of RAF Aircraft Losses 1950 to 1953 by Colin Cummings p.324
3. The Harvard File (John F Hamlin, Air Britain, 1988 p 130)
4. ORB 1 FTS RAF for the period 1-6-47 to 31-12-1950: National Archives (PRO Kew) File AIR29/1810: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C4101520
5. http://www.bcar.org.uk/1945-49-incident-logs#1947
6. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No._1_Flying_Training_School_RAF#Third_formation_(1947_%E2%80%93_1948)
7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RAF_Spitalgate#History

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
12-May-2023 08:58	Nepa	Updated