ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 240851
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| Date: | Friday 7 March 1947 |
| Time: | day |
| Type: |  Fairey Firefly Mk 1 |
| Owner/operator: | 837 Sqn FAA RN |
| Registration: | MB622? |
| MSN: | F7558? |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Trincomalee Bay, Trincomalee, Ceylon -
 Sri Lanka
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | HMS Glory, Indian Ocean, off Ceylon (Sri Lanka) |
Fairey Firefly FR.Mk.1 837 Squadron FAA RN: Written off (destroyed) 7/3/1947. On a practice target interception sortie from HMS Glory, while the carrier was in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), the aircraft dived into the sea into Trincomalee Bay, off Trincomalee. Both wingtips folded upwards while recovering for a diving RP (Rocket Projectile) attack on a target being towed by HMS Jamaica. Aircraft failed to recover from dive, spun into the sea inverted, and both crew were killed
Crew of Firefly FR.1
Lieutenant Commander Geoffrey Hamilton Bates,RN (Pilot, aged 29) - MPK (Missing Presumed Killed) 7/3/1947
Lieutenant David Erskine Mayne RN (Observer, aged 22) - MPK (Missing Presumed Killed) 7/3/1947
As neither crew member was ever found, they are commemorated on a memorial panel at HMS Daedalus, RNAS Lee on Solent, Hampshire
NOTE: The ship's log for HMS Glory for 7/3/1947 gives the serial number of the Firefly involved as "MB6762" [sic]. However, the known and checked histories of Firefly MB672 and MB676 do not correspond to the above accident. Firefly MB672 crashed on take off from RNAS Rattray with 766 Squadron on 11/3/1946. Firefly MB676 was still in service with 1843 Squadron RNVR as "204/AC" from 20/11/1954 until 4/11/1955 (struck off charge 7/5/1957 and sold for scrap 13/5/1957). The serial MB762 was not allocated (production of Fireflies in this batch ended at MB758) and MB677 crashed 30/5/1946 at Trenance Downs, St. Austell, Cornwall (which see)
Firefly MB622 was in service with 837 Squadron FAA RN on board HMS Glory on 8/4/1946, when it was damaged due to the cockpit canopy detaching in flight. HMS Glory's ship's log make no further mention of this aircraft. This makes it a "likely candidate" for the above accident (but not 100% confirmed) as it was on board HMS Glory in 1946-47
Sources:
1. Fleet Air Arm Fixed Wing Aircraft Since 1946 (Ray Sturtivant, Lee Howard & Mick Burrows, Air Britain, 2004 pp.240 & 300)
2. https://www.naval-history.net/xDKCas1947-01JAN.htm
3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trincomalee
4. https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/2973806/GEOFFREY%20HAMILTON%20BATES/
5. https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/2974867/DAVID%20ERSKINE%20MAYNE/
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 02-Sep-2020 18:38 | Dr. John Smith | Added |
| 02-Sep-2020 20:48 | Angel Dick one | Updated [Operator, Operator] |
| 07-Sep-2020 19:31 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Source, Narrative] |
| 20-Sep-2020 22:07 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Narrative] |
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