Lancaster Crash-Scampton WWII

[leading edge!]

Hi looking to see if anyone can assist me re a little aviation history.....

I am desperately trying to find out about my Great Uncle who amazingly survived the following incident during WWII: I cannot confirm it's exact location, but it is believed to have occured at Scampton Airfield or somewhere close to Scampton.

During WWII, my Great Uncle Norman Andrews was I believe PIC on a Lancaster. On what should have been a normal landing, an 'event' occured, whereby he is said (rumoured many times in my younger years) to have flown through a bomb dump situated at the airfield and come out the other side relatively intact (a few minor injuries apparently). I am not sure re the fate of the other crew members.

One suggestion was that the landing was a 'gear up' error ( dont worry, there are those that have and those that will!). I have performed a 'Google' search and this has revealed very little.

Sadly he passed away some years ago and I so regret not finding out more specific information, whilst he was alive. It is of great interest to me, as I have an ATPL and I am sure that some of his 'genes' are accountable for my flying!

Many thanks if you could help or if you have any ideas........

[ID90]

Hello LE,
If that's all the info you have it would appear that you will have to do a little more research in order to get to the bottom of your Uncle's story.
If you are the next of kin or, given that he was related, perhaps you know who his nearest next of kin is, my first suggestion would be to write to the RAF's personnel records office stating his full name any any other info you can give to help them quickly and accurately find his records. The address (it has to be in writing) is:
RAF Disclosure of Information Office
PMA IM IB (RAF),
Room 5, Building 248A,
RAF Personnel Management Agency,
RAF Innsworth,
Gloucester, GL13 1EZ.
They charge £30 for a search (unless his widow is stil alive - she would be entitled to a copy of his records for free).
This will give you the units he served with and the locations of where he was based. From there you will be able to pay a visit to the National Archives at Kew in London, where (after you have obtained a Reader's Ticket) you will be able to take a look at the Operational Record Books (ORBs) of the units he served with and there, hopefully, you will find the answer you a looking for.
Good luck...and don't forget to post the full story when you have it!

[DC10RealMan]

There is also a series of books called "RAF Bomber Command Losses" listing all the fatal and non-fatal accidents during World War II. I have the whole series of books and if you have a rough idea of the year and squadron then I can look in the relevent book and see if it is listed.

[leading edge!]

Thanks for your replies. I will let you know any updates as soon as I can establish more! LE!

[ChiefofFairies]

Good Evening, LE

I may be well wide of the mark on this one but using ‘Bomb dump’ as the keyword, and accepting that Coningsby might just about be described as ‘near Scampton’ (in a global sense), I tasked my collection of disjointed facts and this is what came up:

From ‘Enemy Coast Ahead’ by one G Gibson: The writer is watching a Lancaster take off, which fails to become airborne.

“Then, quite slowly, she stuck one wing into the bomb dump and cartwheeled out of sight. A great cloud of dust arose and seconds later there came a dull thud, as something finally hit something else. …..

…. What had happened was quite simple and certainly no structural failure. The leading edge of his port wing hadn't been screwed down properly and had blown up on take-off, destroying most of the lift from that wing.”

[This took place after 14Mar42 when Gibson was posted to take over 106 Sqdn, but as 106 Sqdn had not at this time re-equipped with Lancasters, the aircraft must have been from the other squadron using that airfield. The pilot, who survived, was given as Tommy Boylan.]

In Bomber Command Losses for 1942, Chorley records the crash of Lancaster L7531 of 97 Sqdn at Coningsby on 24Mar42. “[It] finished up, wrecked near the station bomb dump. Miraculously, the crew escaped serious injury, despite smashing into a crane before coming to a stop.” Unfortunately, Chorley hasn’t a complete crew list, only the captain, Sqdn Ldr TH Boylan. And that isn’t your great uncle! But as this is described as a training sortie, it’s quite possible that another pilot was aboard.

Quite how you would find the crew list, I know not. I doubt that the 97 Sqdn Operations Record Book would be any help, as it was a none-op’l sortie. Perhaps the Form 1180 – Accident Record Card – held by DoRIS at Hendon or by the MOD Air Historical Branch wherever they are these days, might help. Is there a 97 Sqdn Association which might hold records?

Anyway, that’s my thoughts for the day, make of it what you will!

Regards

Allan

[VfrpilotPB/2]

LE,

I urge you to try the people at Innesworth, several years ago I researched by Uncles demise flying a Curtiss Tomahawk for my interest but also my Aunts as well, I was amazed at the info they sent to me on her behalf ( free) I even know how many .303 bullets were loaded and how many were recovered from the crash site, quite unusual and interesting to be able to supply that sort of detail from records collected and kept considering there was quite a war going on

Vfr
Peter R-B

[nickwarr57]

Tommy Boylan, the pilot, although Australian, flew with the RAF, I believe first on Hampdens, later on Lancasters. He (my uncle) married my aunt, had two children, survived the war and went back to Aus. I'm told he was awarded both the DSO & DFC, but I don't know any details.
Nick