WW2 Plane Crash at Todwick & the pilot ghost (?)

[hillsbro]

I lived at Aston Common, I was born in the Police house which is now private near the motorway. My brother and I went cycling to Todwick and on our return whilst leaving Todwick we saw a Gloucester Meteor flying low towards us. It passed over us low and crashed into the field at the side of the old tennis courts. The pilot ejected but his parachute stuck into one of the tailbooms and he was killed. I do not know the date but it must have been about 1948 to 1950

Roger Stocking

Hi Roger - welcome to the Forum! The date was 14 May 1950 - the crash is described here and it was reported in this article from the Sheffield Telegraph of the following day.

[Jim Hardie]

It sounds like the Meteor was a real death trap.

 

From wiki:

 

"A total of 890 Meteors were lost in RAF service (145 of these crashes occurring in 1953 alone), resulting in the deaths of 450 pilots. Contributory factors in the number of crashes were the poor brakes, failure of the landing gear, the high fuel consumption and consequent short flight endurance (less than one hour), causing pilots to run out of fuel, and difficult handling with one engine out due to the widely set engines. The casualty rate was exacerbated by the lack of ejection seats in early series Meteors; the ground-breaking high speed that the aircraft was capable of meant that, during the bailing out process, pilots were typically subject to high g forces hindering movement and the effect of slipstream winds; there was also a greater likelihood of the pilot striking the horizontal tailplane. Ejection seats would be fitted in the later F.8, FR.9, PR.10 and some experimental Meteors. The difficulty of bailing out of the Meteor has been noted by pilots during development, reporting several contributing design factors such as the limited size and relative position of the cockpit to the rest of the aircraft, and difficulty in using the two-lever jettisonable hood mechanism."

 

Almost 900 crashes and less than 4,000 were built.

 

 

And the pilot:

 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raymond_Harries

 

Served all the way through the war with distinction only to lose his life in peacetime. A brave man.

Edited May 13, 2017 by Jim Hardie

[mickyboy]

It was a Meteor from RAF Worksop that crashed near Silkstone Road Hackenthorpe killing the pilot John Cohen on the 26 May 1955

Edited May 13, 2017 by mickyboy

[victormh]

Aha Roger Stocking

 

I was born in Swallownest 1940 and left in 1967 - I remember your father who was always known locally as "Bobby Stocking"

I lived on Aughton Road opposite the Doctors House and your Dad had a habit of coming down Diggers Hill - between Aughton and Swallownest free wheeling on his bike.

I we were out earky evening and it was dark and a llad was stiking matches we would all be stood around him

Next we would hear tick tick tick - and get a cloud behind the ears - the ticking noise was his bike free wheeling. Followed by a warning that next time he would go and see our parents

 

I seem to remember that there was a family lived nearby to you - name of Barson. Their son Frank was in the same year as myself at Woodhiuae Grammar School

 

I moved to Driffield near Bridlington in late 1967 and then in late 2006 to Malaysia

 

Best Wishes - Victor Marshall Hutchinson