Photo 1 - Investigation Day (1) 28th September 2013. Metal detector search in area (B), Main crash area as indicated by eye witness Robert Plant.
Photo 2 - Marked area of surface finds and deeper readings
Photo 3 - Surface finds on day one.
Photo 4 & 5 - Interesting find from day one was this brake lever from the control column. Photo 5 illustrates the lever location in the cockpit.
Photo 6 - Investigation Day (2) 29th September 2013. Area marked for mini digger.
Photo 7 - The Societies Web Master Alex King, manning mini digger, removing top layer of soil from marked crash area.
Photo 8 - First sign of parts a section of engine cowling and wing spar.
Photo 9 - While Melvin searches a burnt layer David (top left) speaks with the land owners son, Ben Tutt. Our special thanks to him and his father Adrian, for their support in this investigation.
Photo 10 - At the depth of around six feet no further signs of the aircraft were found, and virgin clay was soon in evidence. The remains of this damaged steel cable that must have been left behind by the R.A.F. recovery team at the time, is evidence of their commitment to the recovery of this aircraft.
Photo 11 - Eye Witness to the crash Robert Plant (right) looks on with interest as David and Melvin look through some of the days finds.
Roberts account of the crash.
At the time I was aged about 11, along with some friends I was playing in the street outside my home in Charndon, all of a sudden we heard a loud bang overhead, we looked up to see an aircraft that had broken in two, a large section just missed the house at the end of our street, then we heard an explosion and saw smoke rising from a field just out of the village on the road to Marsh Gibbon, my friends and I took off on our bikes, and as it was down hill all the way arrived at the crash first, the field was on fire and ammunition was exploding, just inside the entrance of the field there was a large wheel and tyre from the aircraft, then I heard someone calling “help my friends, my friends, over and over again, then just behind the tyre I saw the badly injured man who was crying out, trying to crawl through the damaged burning crops. By then a number of adults had arrived and we were led away, as an RAF truck arrived. It is a day I shall never forget.
Photo 12 - Artist impression of the crash.
Lest we Forget
Pilot: Fl/Lt. Lawrence Edward MacAdam. DFM. 141102. R.A.F.V.R. Age 28. Killed.
Pilot U/T: Fl/O. Ian MacKenzie Angus. 429413. R.A.A.F. Age 22. Killed.
Air/Bmr: P/O. Richard John Taylor. 163727. R.A.F.V.R. Age 22. Killed.
W/Op/Air/Gnr U/T: F/Sgt. Norman Lindsay Newbey. 427015. R.A.A.F. Age 23. Killed.
Air/Gnr: F/Sgt. Sidney Brown. DFM. 1211203. R.A.F.V.R. Age 37. Killed.
Air/Gnr: Sgt. Ronald Thomas Ankers. 2210700. R.A.F.V.R. Age 21. Killed.
Air/Gnr: Sgt. Thomas Aspin. 3041184. R.A.F.V.R. Age 19. Killed.
Cadet 1st Class Frederick James Dennis Harris. Air Training Corps. Age 18. Killed.
Photo 13, 14 & 15 - Ian, Norman and Ronald.
A special thanks to, Adrian and Ben Tutt, (Land owners) and to Robert Plant (Eye witness) for their help in this recovery. Special thanks also to Robert and Daniel Tuckwell, for their support of our Society.
Photo 16
