FAIREY BARRACUDA DR306

On 15th December 1945 whilst on a cross country navigational exercise flying out of RNAS Rattray in Scotland, Pilot Officer J.R. Crevier had a fortunate escape when he crashed into the flank of Whernside in the Yorkshire Dales. With only minor injuries he managed to walk off the hillside unaided.

What now remains of the wreckage is now scattered through reeds and long grass.

Some very easy to find items are located in the wall below the impact point.

Impact point

Boeing B-17G 44-8683 ''Dear Mom''

looking up to the impact site from the present day wreckage pool

a number can still be made out 

Bottom of shot can be seen the highest wreckage I could find

On the 17th of May 1945 B-17G 44-8683 flying out of Knettishall on a training flight crashed into Great Whernside , Yorkshire in deteriorating weather .

The crew of 5 were all killed . 

Pilot 1st Lt. Harry J. Cole
Co-Pilot 2nd Lt. Vance L. Ferguson
Nav 2nd Lt. James M. Young
Eng Sgt. Hoyt E. Dixon
W. Op. S/Sgt Dario Battista 

The plane had been named 'Dear Mom'

At the location it is still easy to see scarring where the aircraft crashed ....scars are even spaced that seem to indicate where  the engines impacted.

Wellington N2848

On the 30th of January 1942 this aircraft crashed onto the top of Buckden Pike in the Yorkshire Dales .
The crew were on a night training flight and had earlier in the evening taken off from RAF Bramcote .
They became lost when hit by a sudden snowstorm , flying around trying to get a glimpse of land so as to locate their position they clipped a wall and crashed leaving a two hundred yard wreckage trail over the fell .
Four of the crew were killed instantly , the rear gunner Sgt. Joe Fusniak survived , his turret fell from the aircraft on impact ,he sustained a broken ankle.
On realising his predicament he tried to find the aircraft to see if the others survived . Struggling with his ankle in the snow he eventually came upon the fuselage remains and found that only one , Sgt. Jan Sadowski (Wireless Op.), of the crew beside himself were still alive . He was too injured to be moved and realising that the only chance of them surviving was to get help Joe decided to make his way off the fell .
Here the story becomes legend , setting off the wrong way , deeper into the moors ,Joe saw the footprints of a fox going in the opposite direction . realising that the Fox would be heading downhill out of the worst of the weather Joe began to follow the footprints . After much trial and hardship he eventually made it down into the small hamlet of Cray. Found by the local pubs (The White Lion) Landlords daughter they took him in to warmth and safety . Unfortunately the rescue team arrrived too late to save the Wireless Operator ,who was found dead at the crash site.
The crew were
F/Lt Czeslaw Kujawa Pilot
P/O Jerzy Polczyk Co-Pilot
F/O Tadeusz J Bieganski Observer
Sgt Jan Sadowski W/O A/G
Sgt Jan A Tokarzewski A/G
Sgt Jozef Fusniak A/G - survived

Joe was to recieve the Empire medal for his actions in attempting to save his crewmate.

An interesting footnote is that Joe Fusniak was later this same year blown out of his turret on a bombing raid, surviving this he was captured and held till the end of the war by the Germans and had to take part in the infamous POW death march as the Nazis moved prisoners from the advancing Russians .

This aircraft was built in Chester by Vickers as a Mk IC as part of a batch of a hundred.

This shot shows the location of the memorial and the wall a part of which was hit by the aircraft . A much photographed spot , it is difficult to capture something new and original . here I have tried to use the red of Susans jacket to contrast with the dull cloud enveloped hill.

The full story , the fullest ever told , can be found here www.buckdenpike.co.uk/mainstory.html

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Manufacturers stamp

A bronze of the fox

Susan pictured with a part found amongst the heather in the background

Wellington DV718

On the 2nd September 1942 this aircraft took off from Bassingbourn on a training flight with 5 other aircraft . It was a very cold night and with moisture in the air freezing on the aircrafts body became a big problem . Two aircraft of the flight crashed onto the Yorkshire moors , this one is on Blake Hill . the other being Wellington Z8808www.flickr.com/photos/pasujoba44/4937408653/
Two more turned for base , only two of the six completed the nights exercise , one of them crashing on landing !
All but one of this crew were killed in the crash . the surviving crewman died a year later on a mission . The crew were
Sgt George F. Ridgway RNZAF Pilot
P/O Donald H. Lyne Nav. Injured
Sgt Willie Allinson B/A
Sgt Howard W. Spencer R/Op
Sgt Paul McLarnon A/G

The site today has an impact site which I deleted in error:-) This contains small fragments of wreckage and the grass doesnt grow because of fuel contamination.. Away from the impact site can be found chunks of wreckage ,the largest of which is a piece of wing with a leading edge in place . Much of the wreckage was stolen for 'private ' collections in the 1970's . Preserved maybe but who can view it now?

Short Stirling EE975

On the night 14/15th August 1944 ,whilst on a training flight this Sterling bomber developed engine trouble in two of the four engines . Always an underpowered type of aircraft the Stirling began to lose altitude. The Pilot realising they would not be able to make it to an airfield told the crew to bale out . He and the navigator who stayed with him bravely kept the aircraft on an even keel whilst the crew escaped . The navigator eventually baled out to, but unfortunately he did so too low for his parachute to open fully and died only a few hundred metres from the crash site . The aircraft crashed through a wall and came to rest on a limestone pavement which is effectively the top of a cliff at the bottom of which is the small village of Arncliffe.
The Pilot was also killed .

The crew were
P/O Donald McFarlane Bowe RAAF Pilot
F/Sgt Robert J. Douglas RAAF Nav.
who were killed and the survivors were
F/Sgt Cornelius P. O'Neill RAAF B/A
F/Sgt George I. Maloney RAAF W/O
Sgt I.K.Frazer RAF Flt.Eng.
Sgt F.G. Nelson RAF Flt.Eng.
Sgt C M Davis RAF A/G

At the site today can be seen two small wreckage pools , the wall which was rebuilt , and the scarring to the limestone pavement with small pieces wreckage still being wedged deep in the fissures of rock.
Sgt C M Davis RAF A/G