SPITFIRE BL817 FL-G at DAISY HILL - F/Lt HUSBAND

On 13^th May 1942 a Spitfire of 81 Squadron, BL817, was doing aerobatics over County Durham when his engine failed at 2,000 feet and he plummeted towards the ground.  The pilot recovered control at 25 feet and managed a crash landing at  Daisy Hill near Medomsley. 

The aircraft was taken to 45 MU (maintenance unit), Kinloss, Moray for repairs.  In the final analysis, the aircraft was written off as unrepairable but no blame was attributed to the pilot.  He was a Canadian, Sgt Douglas Franklin Husband, who went on to become an Ace – scoring 5 kills and credited with a one third share in damaging another enemy aircraft.  He was also to become an Officer and won the Distinguished Flying Cross.

He was born on 5^th November 1920 in Toronto, Canada.  He arrived in Britain in September 1941 and was posted to 81 Squadron.  He moved on to 401 Squadron before being discharged, alive and well, on 2^nd June 1945.  He had also been promoted to Flight Lieutenant at this stage.

Douglas Franklin Husband (J17192) was awarded his DFC as an acting Flight Lieutenant; this was reported in The London Gazette of 26th January 1945 whilst he was serving in 401 Squadron RCAF.

The citation for his DFC reads:   “This officer is now on his second tour of operations, having completed his first tour in Africa where he destroyed one enemy aircraft and assisted in the destruction of a second. Flying Officer Husband joined this squadron on June 4th, 1944. His ability and daring were soon recognized by his fellow pilots and his eagerness to attack the enemy both in the air and on the ground, no matter what the odds, was admired by all.

Flying Officer Husband's devotion to duty, regardless of the task, has been an inspiration and an example to the other pilots in the Wing.”

During the first three months of the invasion he destroyed another enemy aircraft, and through his persistent attacks against ground targets destroyed or damaged over 50 enemy vehicles, often against extremely heavy flak opposition. During the hectic days of the Arnhem parachute dropping operations, he destroyed a further two enemy aircraft on one sortie, bring his total number of aircraft destroyed to 4 1/3. Latterly, this officer has been engaged in dive-bombing railway communication and ground staffing locomotives, which are among the most heavily defended enemy targets. However, his fearlessness and dauntless courage have again come to the fore and he pressed home his attacks with absolute disregard for his personal safety, achieving remarkable results.

My thanks to Steve Brew and Allan Hillman for pointing out two of my errors (which have now been corrected). 

SURPRISING AUDIENCE

It’s nice to know that people here are reading my blog but who would believe that this local stuff would have a much wider interest.  A recent report shows that it has been viewed in Canada, China, Denmark, Germany, Poland, Russia, Singapore and the United States!

De HAVILLAND MOTH DH60G - G-ABRD - AT KNITSLEY

Lieutenant Colonel Hereward Sprot was a distinguished former soldier who retired and became a partner in the family business, Sir S A Sadler Ltd, which was a coal company who operated several mines between Consett and Bishop Auckland.  This company held the mines right up until nationalisation of the coal industry in 1947. Hereward Sprot was also a licensed pilot. 

His younger son, Samuel Edward Sprot, known as Ted, was a Pilot Officer in 607 Squadron RAF; he was gazetted as such on 29^th August 1934.  He gained his pilot’s licence, No 10445, on 6^th May 1932.  He was just 22 years old when he died. 

His older brother, Alexander Sprot, was a licensed civil pilot and a mining engineer who worked for the family company.  The original family name was Sadler but was changed by Deed Poll on 17^th January 1931.  This was done for inheritance purposes after the death of Hereward Sadler’s mother in law in a car accident – she had only daughters – on New Years Eve 1930.  Her husband, Sir Alexander Sprot MP had collapsed in the House of Commons on 4^th February 1929 and died four days later.

The total inheritance was £6,658.00 which wouldn’t buy you a new car today.  However, that much money, in 1931, was worth just under £320,000.00 in terms of today’s spending power!

According to local reports, and the Operational Record Book of 607 Squadron, on the evening of 24^th April 1935, they were flying on a civilian De Havilland Moth DH60G G-ABRD out of Cramlington (Newcastle Airport at the time), piloted by Alexander.  He made a low pass over Woodlands Hall at Knitsley, Consett, Co Durham to wave at their father and sister in the grounds below.  The aircraft stalled during a low pass over the grounds and Alexander lost control and crashed killing his brother and badly injuring himself.

The distressed family moved on to Colepike Hall at Hollinside near Lanchester and later to St John’s Hall, Wolsingham – both in County Durham.

The remnants of the aircraft were kept and it was eventually rebuilt and was subsequently purchased by Brooklands Flying Club and operated by its subsidiary, the South Coast Aero Club at Shoreham, Sussex until 23^rd June 1940 when it was impressed for war service in the RAF.  It went first to 46 MU (Maintenance Unit) at RAF Lossiemouth, Moray, Scotland.  It then went to 8 RAF Gunnery School, as a target tug, at RAF Evanton, Easter Ross, Scotland on 14^th May 1941.  The only reference after that is “Probably written-off in accident” on 11^th August 1942.  During its military career it was re-registered as AW134.

Unfortunately, I have not been able to find a photograph of this aircraft.  

De Havilland Gypsy Moth G-EBYV at Medomsley

This aeroplane was built in 1928 as a de Havilland DH60G Moth seaplane with a Cirrus II engine.  It was registered as G-EBYV in the name of Major A A Nathan of the de Havilland Company on 23rd June 1928 and later sold on to Kenneth E Parker and Ian Robertson Parker who were sugar merchants from Liverpool but the aircraft was based at Gosport in Hampshire.

There is a report that it was originally based at RAF Mountbatten, the former Cattewater seaplane station at Plymouth, Devon and was frequently used by T E Lawrence (Lawrence of Arabia) during his time in the Air Force.  This information has been confirmed by Major A A Nathan's grandson who has kindly offered me a photograph of T. E. Lawrence beside the aeroplane.  Unfortunately I cannot send him my email address because incoming emails are (no reply) anonymous and I do not have his email.  Should he read this, my email address is nevillebougourd@gmail.com

On 2nd June 1931 it was sold to Iona National Airways whom, I believe, were Ireland's first commercial airline, and was re-registered in Ireland as EI-AAG.  Prior to this sale, it had been converted to a land plane. Whilst in Ireland it was re-engined with a Gypsy engine from another damaged aircraft and was thus converted to a Gypsy Moth.

It was sold to Newcastle upon Tyne Light Aeroplane Club at Cramlington aerodrome and reverted to its original registration of G-EBYV on 16th September 1932.

During its operational life it was twice entered in the King's Cup - a prestigious round Britain air race.  The first occasion was on 28th July 1928 when the race statistics were 38 entrants of which 36 started and 23 finished; one plane crashed, killing the pilot.  On this occasion the plane was flown by a professional pilot, Wing Commander Sydney William Smith.

The Race started from Hendon aerodrome in London and flew a circuitous route around Britain, reaching as far north as Renfrew in Scotland and returning to Brooklands aerodrome in Surrey.  On this occasion Wing Commander Smith was forced to retire at Nottingham after a collision on the ground with an Avro Avian III, G-EBZD, piloted by Flight Lieutenant Boyes.

On 5th July 1930, it was listed as a competitor again, with Ian Robertson Parker, a sugar merchant and later, RAF Officer, from Liverpool as the pilot.  The official entry shows it as a de Havilland Moth with a Cirrus II engine.  The race started from London Hanworth aerodrome, flying a circuitous course as far north as Cramlington aerodrome and returning by an equally convoluted route around the western side of the country.

Of the 101 entrants, only 88 actually started and 61 finished; the race was won by Miss Winifred Brown in an Avro Avian III at an average speed of 102.75mph.  Ian Robertson Parker was not placed but did finish the course.

On 30th June 1936, piloted by Samuel Smith, one of the sons of the founder of the Ringtons Tea company, the aircraft came to an ignominious end and ended up upside down in the yard at Glebe Farm, Medomsley near Consett.  The pilot, Samuel Smith was thrown out and hit Mrs Armstrong, the farmer's wife.  They were unhurt but both ended up in the slurry pit or the duck pond - sources differ.  Some say that the wing tip clipped Mrs Armstrong, knocking her into the slurry pit and that the pilot fell out of the inverted plane and just landed in it.

Wreck of G-EBYV  -   inset Samuel Smith, pilot 

Photo courtesy of Newcastle City Libraries

On 6th March 1937 Samuel Smith was involved in another crash in which his aircraft , de Havilland Tiger Moth G-AELA, "The Ringtonian" was written off in a crash near Newcastle Airport.  The photograph below was kindly supplied by the Smith family and copyright is theirs.

A few months later, in May 1938, Samuel Smith and two of his friends were killed when the aeroplane he was flying crashed and caught fire at Brundholme Ghyll between Skiddaw and Latrigg in the Lake District in appalling weather conditions.  The aircraft was a Percival P10 Vega Gull, registration G-AFGU.  The accident was seen and heard 2 miles away in Keswick.  Unfortunately no photograph of this plane is available.

The crash reports indicate that he made a violent turn to avoid a mountain and the rudder failed, losing some mechanical parts.  The accident was reported in the national press:

HURRICANE Mk 1 - L1963

On Sunday 27^th 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.

HURRICANE MK 1 IN CONSETT - Z7062

On 30th August 1941, a Mk 1 Hurricane, Z7062 from 232 Squadron flew out of RAF Ouston on an army co-operation flight to test the defences of Consett.  After several passes and mock attacks, the aircraft came in at very low level in a dummy attack on a machine gun position in Parliament Street and its starboard wing struck the sandbags protecting a gun emplacement and decapitated one of the soldiers of the defence force.  The aircraft then crashed into a wooden garage at the end of Parliament Street and caught fire, killing the pilot.

Tragically, 232 Squadron were just filling time as they waited to transfer out to the Far East.  The pilot was 23 year old Pilot Officer John Heron Wire RAFVR, Service No 66493.  He was buried in St Mary's churchyard at Stamfordham, Northumberland close to RAF Ouston.

This seems to be the crash in which another story claims that it was a Polish pilot and the soldiers wanted to shoot him to put him out of his misery because they could not get him out of the burning aircraft, but their superior officer would not allow it.

AIR CRASH NEAR BERRY EDGE

Can anyone help with a source of Polish casualties in British squadrons. I have recently heard 2 versions of a story about a Spitfire or Hurricane which crashed in Consett,County Durham. The only reason it would be there would be to defend the very large steelworks from German bombers.

I can get no date but the crash site given is in the town centre close to the steelworks. Up to now I can't confirm the crash but one of the stories says that the pilot was "a young Polish boy" and the party of soldiers who attended the scene wanted to shoot him to put him out of his misery because they could not get him out of the burning wreck, but their officer wouldn't allow it and he
died in agony.

There were a lot of RAF Stations within a few minutes flying time of the town and I know there were Poles at Tranwell and Morpeth. I am still trying to prove that the crash occurred but I would appreciate any ideas.