Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

On 5 March 1945, Lancaster PD437 took off from RAF Blyton at 1851 hours, detailed to carry out a night cross-country flight. The aircraft was returning from the flight and crashed at 2341 hours, when the aircraft’s starboard wing sliced into a 25 foot high tree before crashing in a field near Woodbeck, five miles south east from Retford, Nottingham. All the crew were killed. The aircraft was on track and on ETA at Base. It had completed half a turn flying from west to east and turning slightly to the south east, losing height slowly, but flying normally. After the starboard plane had slightly grazed a tree 25 feet from the ground, but not with sufficient force to deflect its course, the starboard wing being slightly down struck gently rising ground. The aircraft then struck a tree, disintegrated and caught fire. In his remarks on the accident, the CO RAF Blyton stated “The accident may have been due to faulty or misinterpreted altimeter readings.” The Air Vice Marshal of No 7 Group stated: “the accident was due to bad instrument flying. Existing orders state that the Station should remind pilots of safety heights.”

The crew members of PD437 were:

Sergeant Arthur Bligh (1523986) (RAFVR) (Navigator)
Sergeant Peter Edward William Moore (1898052) (RAFVR) (Flight Engineer)
Sergeant Richard Henry Page (1602672) (RAFVR) (Air Bomber)
Flight Sergeant John Hedley Skinner (R/264550) (RCAF) (Rear Gunner)
Sergeant Frederick William Ward (1866600) (RAFVR) (Wireless Air Gunner)
Sergeant Herbert Albert Warman (1883315) (RAFVR) (Mid Upper Gunner)
Flight Sergeant Alexander Wilson (427597) (Pilot)

Reference:  https://highgate-rsl.org.au/afcraaf-roll/wilson-alexander-427597/