Angle Bay

The crew was completing a local training sortie when an engine caught fire in flight. The pilot-in-command attempted an emergency landing in Angle Bay but the airplane touchdown hard, causing a float to be sheared off. The aircraft came to a halt in flames. While all six crew members were able to evacuate the cabin and were uninjured, the airplane was destroyed by fire.

The seaplane departed Pembroke Dock on a Air Sea Rescue operation after another Sunderland crashed southwest of Scilly Island a day before. After all survivors were rescued and embarked on a French boat, the Sunderland took off back to base but hit a wave that caused a large hole in the hull. Decision was taken to divert to RAF Angle Bay. After landing, it came to rest with the port wingtip on the ground after tearing off the port float and was damaged beyond repair. All 11 crew members escaped unarmed.
Crew:
F/O George Singleton, pilot,
P/O Howe, copilot,
F/Sgt Taplin, flight engineer,
F/Sgt Hules, bomb aimer,
F/O Harry Winstanley, navigator,
Sgt H. Hall, wireless operator,
Sgt Hammond, air gunner,
F/Sgt Ronald Church, air gunner,
F/Sgt John Lewis, air gunner,
F/Sgt Stevens, air gunner,
P/O George Viner, air gunner.

The floatplane departed Angle Bay at noon on a maritime patrol flight over an area located some 100 miles west of Brest. In the late evening, the crew was supposed to return to base. While cruising at an altitude of 1,000 feet, the crew was unable to locate Angle Bay due to the lack of visibility caused by the logical blackout. Short of fuel, the crew attempted to ditch the airplane that impacted the water surface and crashed in the Irish Sea. Six crew members were killed and five others took place in a dinghy and were later rescued.
Crew:
Cpl Clifford Oswald William Amos, †
LAC Ralph Douglas Bell, †
AC1 John Charles Francis, †
Cpl Francis Hewitt, †
F/O Thomas Gracie Joyce, †
LAC Norman Raine, †
F/O V. A. Hodgkinson,
Sgt C. L. Gehrig,
Cpl L. G. Corcoran,
F/Sgt T. A. Egerton,
Sgt J. Bradbury.