Aircraft crash at Addlestone, Surrey 1st July 1942
 

Hello Forumites
I am trying to identify the type and serial number of an aircraft which crashed at the Saunders Roe factory at "Chertsey Mead" in Surrey which killed Geoffrey Silverwood LAMB (and possibly Ronald Conway) in July '42. Possibly a Walrus aircraft.
Tia
Andy WIS

Re: Aircraft crash at Addlestone, Surrey 1st July 1942
 

Andy,

Somehow found no casualty Geoffrey Silverwood Lamb or Ronald Conway on CWGC or on naval-history.net with date 1 July 1942 (or any other date for that matter), so they survived?

Royal Navy Pilot Geoffrey S. Lamb on HMS Exeter during the Battle of the River Plate in Dec 1939.

Regards,

Leendert

Re: Aircraft crash at Addlestone, Surrey 1st July 1942
 

Thanks Leendert.
No grave exists for Lamb as he was cremated at Woking Crematorium. The Crem has no record of Conway - his body was taken away for a family burial.
It was not unusual for servicemen or women to be "missing" from the CWGC records - "Shorty" Longbottom being another.
Atb
Andy Bigweeker

Re: Aircraft crash at Addlestone, Surrey 1st July 1942
 

Thanks Leendert.
No grave exists for Lamb as he was cremated at Woking Crematorium. The Crem has no record of Conway - his body was taken away for a family burial.
It was not unusual for servicemen or women to be "missing" from the CWGC records - "Shorty" Longbottom being another.
Atb
Andy Bigweeker

Re: Aircraft crash at Addlestone, Surrey 1st July 1942
 

The Navy List of Oct 1942 lists him as being deceased from the Retired List. This woukd likely explain him missing from CWGC. He may have been a civilian killed flying for a private enterprize. Yes he was probably flying a service aircraft but doubt he would qualify for a normal CWGC entry or that of a civilian since crash was not due to enemy action.

Re: Aircraft crash at Addlestone, Surrey 1st July 1942
 

Hello,

The following cryptic remark from Peter London's, Saunders and Saro Aircraft since 1917, could provide a clue to the identity of the Walrus loss at Addlestone:

Another site developed as a wartime expedient was situated on the Weybridge trading estate at Addlestone in Surrey. There were also two much smaller works at Hersham and Byfleet. Weybridge produced the Walrus II with wooden hulls supplied by Elliotts of Newbury, in addition to the more usual metal ones, the main factory had been made available for the amphibians to fly from, though it was surrounded by high-tension cables on tall pylons and thus was far from ideal; at least one Walrus was destroyed while attempting to leave.

See:
Saunders and Saro Aircraft since 1917.
London,Peter.
London:Putnam,1988
pp.31-2 & 298-9

Col.

Re: Aircraft crash at Addlestone, Surrey 1st July 1942
 

The Probate calender entry for Lamb says he was killed at the Saunders Row facility

On the other hand for Ronald Walter CONWAY it states killed on war service. Indicating he was a service member and hence I would expect to find him on CWGC.

Some one being cremated would still get a CWGC entry, they might be recorded as being at a cremation wall or simpley on the Runnymede memorial or Plymouth for a FAA casualty. They might be on a screen wall in a cemetery also. Lots and lots of options.

Re: Aircraft crash at Addlestone, Surrey 1st July 1942
 

And one other oddity is that Conway and Lamb are not on tge same or adjacent pages of the GRO death register. Check freebmd.org.uk

I think this might simply point to bodies lost in water and Conway was not recovered or washed up until a few days later.

There is a trial period on going with the GRO where you can order death certs by pdf. It might be of interest in this case.

http://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content/certificates/

They wont tell you the serial number however.

Re: Aircraft crash at Addlestone, Surrey 1st July 1942
 

Hello,

The Times has the following notice for Lamb:

ON ACTIVE SERVICE - LAMB, - in July, 1942, on active service, GEOFFREY SILVERWOOD LAMB, late of H.M.S. Exeter, beloved husband of Sylvia Lamb, Crossways Cottage, Shawford, Winchester.

The Times. Thursday, July 23, 1942. p.1.

Col.

Re: Aircraft crash at Addlestone, Surrey 1st July 1942
 

I seen that obituary on ancestry also but I don't think the "on active service" statement is reflective of his actual status per the above navy list etc

Re: Aircraft crash at Addlestone, Surrey 1st July 1942
 

Hello,

No one was suggesting that it was. The death notices are a private affair between The Times and the person/s that place the notice - it is their terminology. It is not an official RN Roll of Honour notice.

Col.

Re: Aircraft crash at Addlestone, Surrey 1st July 1942
 

Why are you getting tetchy with me Col

I'm simply giving some (I feel) worthwhile context to the obituary that I think needed to be stated, you don't have to take every message as an attack on your posting(s).

Re: Aircraft crash at Addlestone, Surrey 1st July 1942
 

Gentlemen
Thank-you all very much for your inputs.
Re Conway: He was a civilian employed by Saunders-Roe. After the accident, his body was taken away by family and buried in East Cowes Cemetery
Re Lamb: Lamb was cremated at Woking Crematorium a few days after the accident and so has no CWGC grave.
Regards
Andy BigWeeker

Re: Aircraft crash at Addlestone, Surrey 1st July 1942
 

Hi, all
Identity of the aircraft was X9558. From the Coroners Report, Lamb was ex Lieutenant RN, employed as a civilian at Saunders-Roe. Conway was also employed by S-R.
Lamb was killed instantly in the crash; Conway died five minutes after getting to hospital from injuries received in the crash. Lamb cremated at Woking Cemetary on the 6th July and Conway buried at East Cowes Cemetary on the Isle of Wight
Thanks all for your interest in this
Regards
Andy BigWeeker

Re: Aircraft crash at Addlestone, Surrey 1st July 1942
 

Thanks for adding the serial number

Checking Air Britain's book FAA Aircraft 1939-1945 they say X9558 was allocated to SARO 29.6.1942 and add 'not delivered'.

This makes me think they crashed either on the delivery flight or on a pre-delivery test flight.

B Rgds
Stig

Re: Aircraft crash at Addlestone, Surrey 1st July 1942
 

Hello, Stig
Thanks for responding. According to the Coroners Report, the (newly built) aircraft was going to undertake its acceptance flight, before being taken on by the military.

Quoting from the Police Report:
" The machine taxied to the end of the field, turned into a slight easterly wind and apparently given full throttle for take-off. It travelled for about 350 yards without becoming airborne, bounced and touched down again, eventually became airborne but did not appear to make sufficient height to clear electric overhead cables which cross boundary of field (practically North to South), a sudden turn was made to the right to avoid the cables and crashed about 35 yards short of them and caught fire."
The book "Sea and Air," a history of Saunders - Roe, states that two of the four blades of the propeller were fixed " the wrong way round"
Hope this is of interest
Regards
Andy B

Re: Aircraft crash at Addlestone, Surrey 1st July 1942
 

Thanks Andy

Yes, that figures. From the wordings used, I thought this particular aircraft was supposed to stay with SARO, but reading other aircraft details, I notice the wording 'allotted at SARO' or 'allotted SARO' on a few others, so perhaps that was not actually the case, or just maybe what is ment is that they were used at SARO for a longer time than normal.

Anyway, thanks for the additional information.

B Rgds
Stig