Tomblin, Gordon Died

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Personal Information

Rank F/S
Forename(s) Gordon
Surname Tomblin
Gender M
Age 29
Date of Death 05-01-1953
Next of Kin Husband of Edna Tomblin
TOMBLIN G

Aircraft Information

Aircraft Boeing Washington
Serial Number WF553
Markings

Memorial Information

Burial/Memorial Country United Kingdom
Burial/Memorial Place Coningsby Cemetery, Lincolnshire

IBCC Memorial Information

Phase Post-War
Panel Number POST (not yet erected on site)

Enlistment Information

Service Number 576970
Service Royal Air Force
Squadron 15 (XV)
Squadron Motto Aim Sure
Trade Flight Engineer
Country of Origin United Kingdom

Miscellaneous Information

One of the survivors- Sgt. William Richard Karr was awarded the Queen's Commendation for Brave Conduct as a result of his actions following the crash. The citation in the London Gazette dated 24 April 1953 takes up the story: "Sergeant Karr was one of five survivors of a Washington aircraft crash which occurred on the night of Monday, 5th January 1953. Five members of the crew were killed and one seriously injured. Immediately after the crash this non-commissioned officer assumed charge and, despite the fact that he was suffering from severe shock, took measures to inform Royal Air Force Station, Coningsby, by telephone. He then returned to the aircraft and supervised the removal of the navigator who was badly injured and pinned down by the wreckage. One wing, close to this position, was burning, but Sergeant Karr entered the fuselage without hesitation, in spite of the danger of explosion. Having done all he could to help the injured man, he stationed himself on the public road where he was able to direct the fire tenders and ambulance to the scene of the crash. The navigator, having been extricated by the combined efforts of the aircrew survivors and civilians, thus received early medical attention. Sergeant Karr displayed initiative and great presence of mind and his prompt action doubtless contributed in no small measure towards saving the injured man's life."
The coroner recorded a verdict of Accidental Death and commended the gallantry of the farm works who helped the emergency services during the rescue operation.

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
Rust F A (F/L) Died
Matthews E (F/S) Died
Howes R D (F/S) Died
Lloyd L F (F/S) Died

Last Operation Information

Start Date 05-01-1953
End Date 05-01-1953
Takeoff Station Coningsby
Day/Night Raid Day
Operation Training sortie.
Reason for Aircraft Loss Aircraft crashed at Claxby Pluckacre near Horncastle, Lincolnshire on third attempt to land in poor weather. One further crewman seriously injured and five others unhurt
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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.