Whitley off Whitby.

The aircraft in the water off Whitby.

The loss and details of what this aircraft were is open to debate. The Whitley ran out of fuel and was ditched in the North Sea close to Whitby Harbour, thought to be on the 16th of December 1940 at 04.10hrs. The aircraft floated and was salvaged and later scrapped, the crew survived. The aircraft apparently took off at 16.45hrs the previous day. If this was the case then running out of fuel was inevitable. The loss is not recorded in W Chorley's 1940 losses book (which is odd), it does appear in Brian Rapier's book credited with another pilot and is also listed in other books with different details. This remains one aircraft that needs to be fully researched to clarify the matter.

Brian Rapier's White Rose Base book has a photograph of the aircraft in the sea at Whitby.

Pilot - Sdn Ldr O A Morris

? - Sgt A L Chapman

? - P/O A G Eperon

? - Sgt L E D Lindsay

? - Sgt P S Pitt

The aircraft was delivered straight from Armstrong Whitworth to 102 Sqdn under contract 38599/39.