Lancaster at Yearsley.

The Lancaster crashed in poor visability at a location often quoted as "Northstead Farm" at 23.45hrs on the 16th of December 1943. The crew were returning from Berlin in bad weather . The aircraft was believed to be breaking cloud when the crash occured and it was also possibly that a slight error in setting QFE may have caused them to be slightly off course. Only the mid upper gunner survived; six were killed in the resulting crash. One source states the "aircraft flew into the hill top where the village crossroads are and crashed across the road narrowly missing houses and other buildings". A total of 483 Lancasters took part in this raid along with a further 10 Mosquito's (possibly as Pathfinders). On return to England, many aircraft encountered severe flying problems due to icing, the operation being given the name "Black Thursday" because of the many losses the Allied bombers sustained on that night.

The aircraft was built to contract AC 239 by Armstrong Whitworth Ltd at Baginton and delivered new to 426 Sqdn at Linton on Ouse in September 1943. It suffered Cat. E2/FB damage in the incident at Yearsley on 16th December 1943. An entry in Linton on Ouse ORB states: "16.12.43. Lancaster returning from Berlin .......-Q of 426 Sq. crashed at Yearsley. 5 killed." The police report also states five killed, which would suggest one died later of the injuries he sustained.

Pilot - Sqdn/Ldr Thomas M (Tommy) Kneale RCAF, aged 29, of Woodstock, Ontario, Canada. Buried Harrogate Stonefall Cemetery. The Form AM1180 quotes him as being an Acting Sqdn Ldr at the time of the crash.

F Eng - P/O Robert Philip Marks RAFVR, aged 22, of Hackney, London, buried Harrogate Stonefall Cemetery.

Nav - P/O George MacDonald Jones RCAF, aged 23, of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. Buried Harrogate Stonefall Cemetery.

A B - F/O James MacKay RCAF, aged 23, of Dodsland, Saskatchewan, Canada. Buried Harrogate Stonefall Cemetery.

WOp/AG - P/O Maurice Milton Prill RCAF (J/18880), aged 22, of Minburn, Alberta, Canada. Buried Harrogate Stonefall Cemetery.

RG - P/O Angus Augustus (Gus) Johnston RCAF, aged 22, of Souris, Prince Edward Island, Canada. Buried Harrogate Stonefall Cemetery. Also listed as rank WO2 in some places.

MUG - Sgt Gordon C Fortier RCAF, of Elmsdale, Nova Scotia, injured.

Squadron Leader Tommy Kneale with his fiancee Mary Womar (my thanks to Mr Andy Groome, nephew of Ms Womar, for this photograph). Thomas Kneale was born in December 1914, he joined the RCAF in April 1941 and received his pilot's badge and commission in October 1942. P/O Kneale, as he was then, and his crew joined 426 Squadron from 23 OTU, RAF Pershore, on 23rd May 1943, they left for a spell at 1679 HCU East Moor on the 26th of June and returned with the full complement now encluding a flight engineer. S/Ldr Kneale became B. Flight Commander of 426 Sqdn on 27th November 1943, a position he held until his death less than a month later. At the time of their deaths, S/Ldr Kneale and most of his crew had completed 16 Ops, P/O Marks and Sgt Fortier had done 14 complete sorties.

P/O Jones and his headstone.

F/Sgt Johnston, Sgt Fortier and P/O Prill. Some sources incorrectly name the survivor as G.C. Foster.

The Prill family almost certainly lost another son just over a month after Maurice Prill's death. Sgt Berle Clinton Prill RCAF was serving with 427 Sqdn and was lost on 21st January 1944 when Halifax EB246 crashed in Germany, his and his crews remains are now buried in Berlin War Cemetery.

This vase was made from a fire extinguisher bottle recovered from this aircraft. My thanks to Mr Johnnie Shipley for these photographs.

I do known exactly where the aircraft crashed but it is thought to have damaged this house, formally the village pub which stands on the crossroads. The left end of the building does appear to have had some building work done - the width between far end and the door appears longer than the near end and the door.

The then F/Lt Kneale was involved in another accident whilst stationed at Linton on Ouse. On the 19th of October 1943 he was air-testing a B.A. Eagle DP847, belonging to 6 GComFlt. On landing back at Linton at 15.10hrs on this day the aircraft was damaged when the wheels folded. This aircraft was not repaired. The Eagle had being requesitioned by the RAF on 14th March 1941 from the Marquess of Donegal where it carried the civilian serial of G-ADVT where it went to White Waltham for the next few months. After a period of not flying it was released to 6 Group on 9th December 1942. It is not thought F/Lt Kneale was injured in this incident.