Crash of an Avro 679 Manchester I near RAF Horsham St Faith

Date & Time: Feb 10, 1942 at 0755 LT
Type of aircraft:
Operator:
Registration:
R5834
Flight Type:
Survivors:
Yes
Schedule:
Woolf
Location:
Region:
Crew on board:
7
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
0
Circumstances:
The airplane departed RAF Woolfox Lodge at 0220LT on an operation to Brest. It was hit by the German Flak over the target area, resulting in a loss of power on the starboard engine. The crew was returning to base when the port engine stopped through lack of petrol and the bomber crash landed near RAF Horsham St Faith in Norwich. All seven crew members escaped uninjured.
Crew:
F/Sgt J. B. Underwood, pilot,
Sgt B. Usher, copilot,
W/O Scott, observer,
F/Sgt R. G. Fawkes, wireless operator,
F/O P. F. B. Bluett, air gunner,
F/Sgt J. D. Patey, air gunner,
Sgt Graham, air gunner.
Probable cause:
Fuel exhaustion and engine failure after being attacked by enemy fire.

Crash of an Avro 679 Manchester I off Morgat: 2 killed

Date & Time: Feb 1, 1942
Type of aircraft:
Operator:
Registration:
L7472
Flight Phase:
Flight Type:
Survivors:
Yes
Schedule:
Woolfox Lodge - Woolfox Lodge
Country:
Region:
Crew on board:
8
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
2
Circumstances:
The airplane departed RAF Woolfox Lodge at 1845LT on January 31 on an operation to Brest. While returning to base on the following night, the bomber was shot down by the German Flak. A crew member bailed out but his parachute failed to deploy and he was killed. Later, the airplane crash landed in the sea off Morgat and was lost. A second crew member drowned while six others became PoW.
Crew (61st Squadron):
F/Sgt Stephen Joseph MacLean, †
Sgt Geoffrey Herbert Marshall, †
F/Lt Ronald Duncan Fraser,
Sgt Albert William Hadley,
F/Lt William Hugh Hannigan,
Sgt Brian Henderson Mullen,
F/Sgt William Hugh Shorrock,
F/Sgt Thomas William Walsh.
Probable cause:
Shot down by the German Flak.

Crash of an Avro 679 Manchester I in Brélès: 4 killed

Date & Time: Jan 31, 1942 at 2030 LT
Type of aircraft:
Operator:
Registration:
R5787
Flight Phase:
Flight Type:
Survivors:
Yes
Schedule:
Woolfox Lodge - Woolfox Lodge
Country:
Region:
Crew on board:
7
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
4
Circumstances:
The airplane departed RAF Woolfox Lodge at 1805LT on an operation to Brest. Approaching the target area, it was shot down by the German Flak and crashed in Blérès. Four crew members were killed and three others became PoW.
Crew:
F/O John Robert Bruno Parsons, pilot, †
Sgt William Thomas Holmes, observer, †
Sgt Kenneth William McCaskill, wireless operator, †
Sgt Thomas Arthur Butterworth, air gunner, †
Sgt Robert Victor Griffiths,
Sgt Leonard Wright,
Sgt Reginald Thomas Kindred.
Probable cause:
Shot down by the German Flak.

Crash of an Avro 679 Manchester I into The Channel: 8 killed

Date & Time: Jan 31, 1942
Type of aircraft:
Operator:
Registration:
L7396
Flight Phase:
Flight Type:
Survivors:
No
Schedule:
Woolfox Lodge - Woolfox Lodge
Country:
Region:
Crew on board:
8
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
8
Circumstances:
The airplane departed RAF Woolfox Lodge at 1850LT on an operation to Brest. While returning to base in the evening and cruising over The Channel about 80 km south of Plymouth, the crew sent a short mayday message then the airplane crashed into the sea. SAR operations failed to find any trace of the airplane and one body was found few days later on a beach on the Scilly Islands.
Crew (61st Squadron):
F/Lt Harry Charles Shaw Page, pilot,
P/O Denys Lowe Atkinson,
P/O Alan Gladstone Burt,
Sgt Thomas Alfred Evans,
Sgt Leonard William Dann,
F/Sgt Harry Edward Turner,
Sgt Ronald Sidney Jones,
S/L Thomas Noel Challoner Burrough.

Crash of an Avro 679 Manchester I in Grimoldby

Date & Time: Jan 16, 1942 at 0100 LT
Type of aircraft:
Operator:
Registration:
L7495
Flight Phase:
Flight Type:
Survivors:
Yes
Schedule:
Woolfox Lodge - Woolfox Lodge
Region:
Crew on board:
7
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
0
Circumstances:
The airplane departed RAF Woolfox Lodge at 1730LT on January 15 on an operation to Hamburg. While returning to base the following night, it ran out of fuel and the crew attempted to divert to RAF Bottesford. Due to poor weather conditions, the crew was unable to localize the airfield. All seven crew members bailed out and abandoned the airplane that entered a dive and crashed in a field. The entire crew escaped uninjured.
Crew (61st Squadron):
F/O J. Beard,
Sgt Haynes,
F/Sgt Asson,
Sgt O. W. J. Pearce,
Sgt Sheppard,
F/Sgt Underwood,
Sgt Holmes.
Probable cause:
Fuel exhaustion.

Crash of an Avro 679 Manchester IA off Boulogne-sur-Mer: 7 killed

Date & Time: Dec 8, 1941
Type of aircraft:
Operator:
Registration:
L7494
Flight Phase:
Flight Type:
Survivors:
No
Schedule:
Woolfox Lodge - Woolfox Lodge
Country:
Region:
Crew on board:
7
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
7
Circumstances:
The airplane departed RAF Woolfox Lodge at 1742LT on an operation to Boulogne-sur-Mer, with 19 other similar aircrafts. While approaching the French coast, the bomber exploded and crashed into the sea few miles offshore. All seven crew members were killed.
Crew (61st Squadron):
S/L John Lawrence Riley, pilot,
Sgt Cyril Leslie Wells, copilot,
F/Sgt John Wilson, radio navigator,
P/O Reginald Adcock, flight engineer,
Sgt James Crawford, air gunner,
Sgt James Benjamin Leight, air gunner,
Sgt John Victor Randall, air bomber.