Short Stirling
RAF Serial: BF333
1651 Heavy Conversion Unit
Crew: All seven crew members survived
Date: 22nd November 1942
Place: Portobello Farm, near Shipston-on-Stour

On 22nd November 1942, Stirling BF333 “R” of 1651 Heavy Conversion Unit took off from RAF Waterbeach in Cambridgeshire on a training flight. The crew consisted of Sgt. C. Easton (RNZAF) as pilot, Sgt. J. B. T. Williams as navigator, Sgt. J. Banyer as bomb aimer, Sgt. L. Pattison as wireless operator, Sgt. E. Kirby as flight engineer, and Sgts. B. Jennings and N. Hutchins as air gunners.

Julian Evan-Hart takes up the story some 20 minutes into the flight:

For several minutes an uneven pitch had been noticed above the usual roar and vibration of the Hercules engines, and the controls were not as responsive as normal, even for such a large aircraft. Suddenly, a dreadful clanking and clattering sound came from the starboard inner engine, which then failed and had its propeller feathered to reduce drag. The controls did not improve and instead grew heavier, while the Stirling began to lose height, unable to maintain airspeed or altitude even with the remaining three engines at full power. At 3,000 feet, and with no improvement in control response, the decision was made to abandon the aircraft.

All members of the crew successfully bailed out over Evesham, escaping serious injury. The worst injury was sustained by the navigator, Sgt. John Williams, who suffered a broken tibia, while the others incurred sprains and minor cuts. The abandoned aircraft continued for a short distance, gradually losing height before flipping onto one side. With the wind shrieking past the feathered blades and open escape hatches, and the remaining engines screaming at full power, the Stirling finally crashed at Portobello Farm, near Shipston-on-Stour.

The navigator of BF333, John Williams, later passed away in 2005. While he was recuperating from his injuries, the remaining members of his crew returned to RAF Waterbeach and were subsequently assigned to 15 Squadron. On the night of 4–5 May 1943, Sgt. J. Banyer, Sgt. L. H. Patterson, and Sgt. W. Jennings took off for Dortmund in Stirling EF345, coded LS-M. The aircraft was hit by anti-aircraft fire and crashed near Anholt, approximately 12 km west-north-west of Bocholt. The casualties were initially buried at Anholt and later reinterred at the Reichswald Forest War Cemetery.