Date:	Saturday 17 August 1946
Time:	day
Type:	Supermarine Spitfire F Mk VIII
Owner/operator:	155 Sqn RAF
Registration:	MD340
MSN:	CHA.
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	Soewondo AFB, Medan, North Sumatra -   Indonesia
Phase:	Landing
Nature:	Military
Departure airport:
Destination airport:	Soewondo Air Force Base, Medan, North Sumatra, Indonesia
Confidence Rating:	Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources

Narrative:
MD340: Spitfire LF. VIII, built by Vickers Armstrongs (Supermarine) at Chattis Hill, with Merlin M66 engine. To 9MU RAF Cosford, Shropshire 8-2-44. To 82MU RAF Lichfield, Fradley, Staffordshire 1-7-44 for packing and crating for shipment overseas. Shipped on the SS 'Turkistan' 28-7-44, arriving India 5-9-44. To 155 Squadron RAF, Tabingaung, Burma

Written off (damaged beyond repair) 17-8-46 in a wheels up landing at Soewondo Air Force Base, Medan, North Sumatra, Indonesia: according to the relevant entry in the squadron ORB:

"Wheels-up landing Medan Sumatra 17-08-1946. 2 Sorties flown today - Flying Officer James and F Sgt MIDGELEY carried out a recce of Berastagi , Siantar etc to see what the Indonesians were doing on Independence Day. There were large crowds at the towns but only at Siantar were there armed men. While landing back at Medan, F/Sgt Midgeley forgot to lower his undercarriage and belly flopped on the runway. Squadron was disbanded at end of the month"

Some sources state: "The pilot forget to lower the undercarriage, and this was not noticed by ATC (Ait Traffic Control) until very late on the Spitfire's final approach. When the Air Traffic Controller attempted to use his VEREY pistol (in order to fire a red warning flare to the pilot, and warn him of the problem), the VEREY pistol failed to fire, as the Air Traffic Controller forgot to release the safety catch!"

In January 1944, 155 Squadron finally replaced its Curtiss Mohawks with Supermarine Spitfires. Initially these were used for air defense duties until the Imperial Japanese Army Air Service in Burma ceased to be a threat. Ground attack missions and escort for transport missions then became its main tasks, the Spitfires carrying 500-lb bombs during the last months of the campaign. In mid-September 1945, after V-J Day, the squadron flew to Singapore soon after the Japanese surrender and in February 1946, moved to Sumatra to provide tactical support for the British Army units there until disbanded on 31-8-46

Damage initially assessed as Cat. E; aircraft not repaired and Struck Off Charge 20-8-46 as Cat. E(FA). The fact that 155 Squadron disbanded some 11 days later may have also been a factor in the decision not to repair Spitfire MD340.

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 to 1949 by Colin Cummings p.200
3. Royal Air Force Aircraft MA100-MZ999 (James J Halley, Air Britain)
4. "RAF Write-offs 1946": Air Britain Aeromilitaria 1979 p.102: https://air-britain.com/pdfs/aeromilitaria/Aeromilitaria_1979.pdf
5. 155 Sqn RAF ORB for the period 1-9-1945 to 31-8-1946: National Archives (PRO Kew) File AIR27/1039/17: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/D8389942
6. https://allspitfirepilots.org/aircraft/MD340
7. https://www.avialogs.com/spitfire-and-seafire-registry/item/89496-md340
8. https://www.rafcommands.com/database/serials/details.php?uniq=MD340
9. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No._155_Squadron_RAF#Second_World_War
10. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soewondo_Air_Force_Base

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
11-Jun-2023 17:12	Dr. John Smith	Added
11-Jun-2023 17:18	Nepa	Updated
04-Jul-2023 07:28	Ron Averes	Updated