Vincent, Arthur Died

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Personal Information

Rank Sgt
Forename(s) Arthur
Surname Vincent
Gender M
Age 30
Date of Death 18-10-1939
Next of Kin Son of Albert and Dorothy Jane Vincent, of Sunderland. Husband of Olga Vincent, of Humbledon, Sunderland.
VINCENT A

Aircraft Information

Aircraft Armstrong Whitworth Whitley III
Serial Number K8996
Markings DY-

Memorial Information

Burial/Memorial Country United Kingdom
Burial/Memorial Place Sunderland (Southwick) Cemetery
Grave Reference Sec. D. Grave 1243.
Epitaph LORD, YOUR THORNS ARE MY ROSES, AND YOUR SUFFERINGS MY PARADISE

IBCC Memorial Information

Map
Directions to panel 257
VINCENT A

Location

Row -
Panel 257
Column -
Line -

Directions From the Chadwick Centre, take the central path towards The Spire.

Phase 2
Panel Number 257

Enlistment Information

Service Number 560443
Service Royal Air Force
Group 4
Squadron 102 (Ceylon)
Squadron Motto Tenate et perficite (Attempt and achieve)
Trade Ground
Country of Origin United Kingdom

Other Memorials

Location St. Catherine's Church Barmby Moor, East Yorkshire
Country United Kingdom
Memorial Type Roll of Honour in wall mounted wooden case, Sqn Badge above
Memorial Text 102 (Ceylon) Sqn Roll of Honour and Sqn badge
Location Pocklington Gliding Club, Pocklington Airfield, Easy Yorkshire
Country United Kingdom
Memorial Type Stylised Memorial with inscribed metal plaque
Memorial Text Memorial to 102 (Ceylon) Sqn RAF and 405 (Vancouver) Sqn RCAF which served at RAF Pocklington during WW2
Location Yorkshire Air Museum, Elvington, North Yorkshire
Country United Kingdom
Memorial Type Memorial Gardens, Propeller, Inscribed Marble Tablets
Memorial Text In everlasting homage to the courage of those who have found their winged victory through the skies of Yorkshire
Location Yorkshire Air Museum, Elvington, North Yorkshire
Country United Kingdom
Memorial Type Propeller Unit & Inscribed Marble Tablets
Memorial Text They made the supreme sacrifice so that you & I may go in peace with freedom. 4 Group 1939 - 1945.
Location Heslington Hall, York, North Yorkshire
Country United Kingdom
Memorial Type Inscribed Metal Plaque
Memorial Text Heslington Hall 1941 - 1945, 4 Gp Headquarters Bomber Command. In remembrance of those Air & Ground personnel who made the supreme sacrifice that we all may walk in peace with freedom

Miscellaneous Information

The aircraft was ferrying ground crew and supplies to 41 Squadron which was preparing to move its Spitfires from Catterick to Wick. After loading the supplies, six passengers boarded the aircraft. Sgt Gaut selected the longest available take off run, but when half way across the airfield, the Whitley suddenly rose to about ten feet, followed by a near vertical climb at full throttle. Eye witnesses state that the bomber stalled, below 100 feet, and dived nose first into the ground, exploding on impact. Miraculously, two of the six passengers survived. The cause of the accident may have been that the aircraft was seriously tail-heavy due to it having been overloaded with supplies.

The National Archives

Record of Events (Operational Record Book) AIR 27/807/4
Summary of Events (Operational Record Book) AIR 27/807/4

Fellow Servicemen

Please note that this list gives all the losses aboard the quoted aircraft and occasionally these may have occurred on an earlier date when the aircraft was not itself lost. Please check the dates of death carefully.

Name Outcome
Clark J B (AC1) Died
Gaut H J (Sgt) Died
Harris A H (Sgt) Died
Jones H (AC1) Died
Luckman R A M (P/O) Died
Paterson C (AC1) Died

Last Operation Information

Start Date 18-10-1939
End Date 18-10-1939
Takeoff Station Driffield
Day/Night Raid Day
Operation Transit to Catterick
Reason for Aircraft Loss Crashed and exploded on take-off. The four crew members on board were killed along with three of the five passengers from 41 Squadron
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Casualty Pack

IBCC is delighted to introduce a unique facility to link the Losses Database to the relevant RAF Casualty Pack on the National Archives website. This project is the result of on-going collaboration between IBCC, the MOD Records Office and National Archives, Kew. This document describes what Casualty Packs are, when they were created, the process of making them available to the public and then goes on to describe the process by which you can view the contents of the packs. Casualty Packs (CPs) were created by the RAF whenever there was serious injury or loss of life associated with operational activity within the RAF. This includes operational flying losses, enemy action due to air raids, road accidents either on station or even off-station if they involved RAF vehicles. Deaths due to natural causes in service or accidents that did not involve RAF vehicles did not generally give rise to a CP.

CPs were originally given a unique reference number by the RAF. Each begins with the letter ‘P’ and is followed by six digits, then an oblique (forward slash) and the finally the year in which the incident took place- for example P396154/42.

The CPs are in the process of being made available to the general public as they are passed from the MOD Records Office, Portsmouth to National Archives, Kew. This process requires some rework to the files which is very time consuming, so the process of making them all available to National Archives will take several years. They are being made available in increasing date order.

Once CPs arrive at National Archives they are assigned a unique AIR81 number, so each CP has both a P-number and an AIR81 number. Both are searchable on the National Archives website under ‘Search the catalogue’ and both are included on the IBCC website.

The AIR81 reference on the IBCC website is a link to the file on the National Archives website. When you click on it, the relevant page will open in a new tab on your browser.

There is currently no plan to digitise AIR81 files, partly because they are fragile and partly because the information they contain can at times be sensitive, even harrowing, since they may contain exhumation reports and even photographs of corpses. Family members wishing to read the AIR81 files relating to their ancestors are advised to exercise caution and be guided by National Archives warnings where appropriate.

There are two means for accessing AIR81 files- to attend in person or to order a copy by post.

To attend in person, the attendee should first create a Reader’s Ticket. This can be done online by following this link: https://secure.nationalarchives.gov.uk/login/yourdetails. Then click on the AIR81 reference on the IBCC website and click Order in Advance. Enter your Reader’s Ticket number and state the date on which you intend to visit. National Archives will have the file ready for you when you arrive, saving you time. When you visit Kew, you must quote the Reader’s Ticket number and take along two forms of ID- one bearing your signature and one bearing your address. When you view the files, you are permitted to take photographs of each page, should you wish.

Alternatively, if you wish to order a copy by post, please be aware that there is a charge for this service based on the number of pages in the file. Click on the AIR81 reference on the IBCC website and then click Request a Copy. There is an £8.40 charge for National Archives staff to access the file and give you a quotation for the copying service. The process takes around 24 days to complete and can be expensive.

IBCC wishes to thank the staff at the MOD Records Office and National Archives for their engagement and assistance in making this facility available to our website users.