This story is from 1941:
BBC - WW2 People's War - 1941
Seems to indicate that the pilot would NOT have been able to see the goosenecks from 3 miles.
Pure speculation, but other possibilities include:
Mistaking a dim light in Bar House Farm for the locating bonfire, if there was one.
Mistaking a couple of cars down Bar House Farm road for the Goosenecks
(n.b. Bar Hill did not exist in 1941 - it was new-built in 1967 see below for old map
battle damage causing loss of control when flaps / gear were selected
injuries to pilot
etc.
Fighters hang around approach paths for easy kills. They did then and they still do now! We like easy kills!