On Sunday 27th October 1940, at 10.25 am a Hurricane Mk 1, L1963, from 43 Squadron did a vertical dive into the ground at Congburn Dene near Edmondsley, County Durham. The pilot was Sergeant Leonard Vivian Toogood RAFVR, Service No 758096; he was just 20 years old. There is a suspicion that he was doing aerobatics but there is no firm evidence to back it up.
The Squadron was based at RAF Usworth – the present site of the Nissan car factory and the North East Aircraft Museum. They had recently arrived at Usworth, having taken part in the Battle of Britain and were only temporarily posted there whilst they awaited a posting to the Far East.
Sgt Toogood’s body was taken to Portsmouth and buried in Kingston Cemetery in that city.
Several reports incorrectly name the crash site as Cragburn Dene.
