Meteor Research

[TangoCharlie07]

I am brand new to this forum so please bear with me if I am not wholly conversant with protocols.

My Mother's cousin was a young Sergeant Pilot in 1951, based at Wattisham. On 10/10/51 he died when his Meteor WA787 crashed near Westerfield, Ipswich. My interest in this subject has been rekindled since my son joined the RAF last year and as part of his training was tasked with producing a potted history of the Meteor after he commenced trade training at Cosford.

His name was Robert Mornington Colley and he was aged 24 years at the time of his death.

I have acquired copies of the flight crash records from the RAF archives, which are very interesting but limited in the amount of information that they hold.

Does anyone on the forum know where I should go next to find any other information, or better still, is there anyone who might have known Robert?

Thank You.

[swp53]

Try here for some meteor info
http://www.pprune.org/military-aviation/70987-meteor-accident-statistics.html
and
http://www.pprune.org/military-aviation/300245-meteor-accidents-1953-a.html

[TangoCharlie07]

Thanks swp53.

[Danny42C]

TangoCharlie07,

There is a Thread running on Military Aviation Forum which may be of interest:

Meteor Accident Statistics (http://www.pprune.org/military-aviation/70987-meteor-accident-statistics.html) (http://www.pprune.org/images/misc/multipage.gif 1 (http://www.pprune.org/military-aviation/70987-meteor-accident-statistics.html) 2 (http://www.pprune.org/military-aviation/70987-meteor-accident-statistics-2.html) 3 (http://www.pprune.org/military-aviation/70987-meteor-accident-statistics-3.html) 4 (http://www.pprune.org/military-aviation/70987-meteor-accident-statistics-4.html) 5 (http://www.pprune.org/military-aviation/70987-meteor-accident-statistics-5.html) 6 (http://www.pprune.org/military-aviation/70987-meteor-accident-statistics-6.html) ... Last Page (http://www.pprune.org/military-aviation/70987-meteor-accident-statistics-16.html))
A2QFI

Danny42C.

[David Thompson]

There is a station heritage centre at Wattisham who may be able to help ? Details here ; Wattisham Station Heritage Museum Home Page - Wattisham Station Heritage Airfield Museum (http://www.wattishamstationheritage.org/)

The Meteor was a 263 Squadron machine but there doesn't appear to be a squadron association . As a family member you can apply for his record of service from RAF Cranwell which may give you some other leads such as his flying training details which may prove useful ? Have a look here ; https://www.gov.uk/guidance/request-records-of-deceased-service-personnel

Good luck !

[Old-Duffer]

The aircraft took off and shortly afterwards was seen in a shallow dive from 5000 feet. At about 30 feet, it banked to the right and struck the ground.

Old Duffer

[Wander00]

Odd, I have my dossier from Cranwell, but no flying training (F5000 series) documents

[TangoCharlie07]

Odd, I have my dossier from Cranwell, but no flying training (F5000 series) documents
Hi Wande00 and sorry for not getting back before now. I am a total newby to this site and do not understand the response that you posted to my question -

[TangoCharlie07]

The aircraft took off and shortly afterwards was seen in a shallow dive from 5000 feet. At about 30 feet, it banked to the right and struck the ground.

Old Duffer
Thanks for the reply to this Old Duffer and sorry for not having replied to you earlier.

Was your response to my original message taken from the air accident record or do you have a different sourse. If you do have another source I would be really interested in it if at all possible.

Many Thanks.TC

[TangoCharlie07]

There is a station heritage centre at Wattisham who may be able to help ? Details here ; Wattisham Station Heritage Museum Home Page - Wattisham Station Heritage Airfield Museum (http://www.wattishamstationheritage.org/)

The Meteor was a 263 Squadron machine but there doesn't appear to be a squadron association . As a family member you can apply for his record of service from RAF Cranwell which may give you some other leads such as his flying training details which may prove useful ? Have a look here ; https://www.gov.uk/guidance/request-records-of-deceased-service-personnel

Good luck !
Good Morning David and thank you very much for your response and useful links. I am sorry for not replying before now, but just having returned from knee surgery I can refocus on the job in hand!

Any idea why 263 Squadron lacks an association? I believe that 263 was known as "Fellowship of the Bellows (Argentina)", which is even odder?!

I think I will be travelling to Watttisham when they open to the public in early April.

Thanks again David

Kind Regards

Tony

[NutLoose]

They used to purchase aircraft for the RAF during the war, hence the adoption of the name.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fellowship_of_the_Bellows

http://www.raf.mod.uk/history/263squadron.cfm

As they disbanded in 63 for the final time, if you were about twenty years old on the squadron, you would be in the region of 74 years old now, one would surmise there are not enough survivors remaining to justify having an association. Sadly time catches up with us all.


..

[Pontius Navigator]

TC, service records were given a grading of confidential. As a Sgt your cousin may have had RAF Form 6442 raised as an annual report. I am assuming that was still the number in 1951. In addition, as aircrew, he would have had RAF Form 5000 series raised for each phase of training and annually on squadron. It is a series as different forms would be completed for different things. A post flight form during flying training and operational conversion unit training would have been raised after every flight. On the squadron a form would have been raised after every check flight by a squadron commander or flight commander.

Dave Thomson said you can apply for a copy of his records, I believe you actually need the permission of his next of kin so you may need to track down an uncle or aunt or one of his brothers, sisters, or spouses thereof, whoever is the next of kin.

Not mentioned so far is the Air Historical Branch at RAF Northolt who hold the squadron operational record books, Form 540, a narrative, and Form 541 that details some flights such as recognized exercise sorties as opposed to ordinary training.

Good luck.