Martin,
I was on the flight engineers course when this accident occurred. Prior to that, I had just been posted from Colerne where I was and engine basher before applying for aircrew.
I used to date a girl who lived in the Thickwood quarters and often walked the path close to where the aircraft impacted, so know that area intimately.
I hope that this thread has belatedly given you some closure. So many accidents are just that and often nothing major comes from it. More often than not they are interlaced with clear examples of human error.
This crew did nothing wrong. At the time, the training captain was only following SOP for the time and the aircraft suffered a technical failure (fortunately quite rare in this day and age). I suppose the point I am making is nobody was to BLAME per se, it wasn't negligence, it wasn't a 'cowboy' pilot being macho - it was simply an awful tragedy.
And, as been said above, lessons were learned - for all time on RAF Hercules. The SOP was changed and crews were not subject to this particular vulnerability, perhaps it was not as 'in vain' as most accidents. A very high price, too high a price to pay for all those involved.
If you wish to discuss this anymore, feel free to PM me and I will tell you anything else that I can or we can talk on Skype. I used to use this accident to teach crews about the massive forces involved in this kind of engine/propeller combination when not powered i.e. engine running down.