Crash of Halifax W.1181 into DT.512 landing 24 Oct 42

[researchingreg]

After a raid on Genoa on 23/24 Oct 1942: see attached
Halifax W1181 D-DY at Holme on Spalding Moor airfield.

In the early hours of 24th October 1942 this aircraft was diverted to land at Holme on Spalding Moor airfield on return to the UK from Ops to Genoa because of poor weather. At 03.31hrs the aircraft was attempting to land at Holme on Spalding Moor but let down on top of Halifax DT512 Q-DY, which had landed at 03.30 with burst tyres. W.1181 skidded to a halt on it's belly and the crew escaped serious injury, sadly two in DT512 were killed and the photograph shown above depicts the crash scene the following morning.

The crew of W.1181 were as follows: F/S I.L. Berry (Captain), W/O Cranwell (2nd Pilot?), P/O Eric Hargreaves (Navigator), Sgt. D. Hubbard, Sgt J.W Crouch, Sgt. W.E. Pattison, F/S J.B Bell.

The crew of DT.512 were as follows: W/C S.B. Bintley A.F.C. (Captain who was killed), Group Captain E.J. Corbally (2nd Pilot?), F/O A.J. Graham (W/Op, who later died in York Military Hospital), F/S J.A.T. Stimpson, Sgt. K. White, Sgt R.R. Long, F/O V.B. Davies and F/S G. Richmond.

Footnote: My relation, 102 Sqn Pilot Officer Geoffrey King and his crew flew W1181 to Flensburg on operations on 26 Sep 1942 they were Sgt Barker – second pilot, Sgt Herbert Thomas Cheetham - Flight Engineer, P/O Thomas Henry Follett – Bomb Aimer, Sgt P. D. Farquarson, Sgt Harold Clarkson–Wireless Operator/Air Gunner, Sgt Derrick Johnson – Air Gunner and Sgt Frederick Ralph Thompson – Air Gunner.

Also Peter Tailor's (a 102 forum member) Grandfather Eric Hargreaves was in W.1181during the crash.