DeHavilland Vampire FB5 VZ106

The main pile of the still-extensive wreckage from this early jet-powered Fighter/Bomber which crashed on the slopes of Fan Hir, in the Black Mountains in Wales in 1953.

The pilot apparently let down through thick cloud without getting a fix on his position or requesting a radar-controlled descent, resulting in his death.

The wreckage constituted a more or less complete aircraft until 1986, since when the usual suspects have taken it upon themselves to "recover" some of it.

Location: SN 82641 20037

(There are also some big chunks of wreckage in a nearby gully around SN 8258 1990)

Avro Anson Mk. 1 L9149

Second 'plane of the day. More or less all that remains of this Anson which became disorientated and crashed in thick cloud and rain on Fan Brycheiniog in January 1939 are these globs of formerly molten aluminium and rusty scraps of steel.

There is a memorial to this crash and the associated rescue operation at the church in Glyntawe, at the foot of these hills, as previously featured on our site

Location: SN 82499 21249

Supermarine Spitfire Mk. I X4588

Supermarine Spitfire X4588
Originally uploaded by seansonofbig

A day out in the Brecon Beacons yesterday located the crash site of Spitfire X4588, fatally crashed by Sgt. D P Carruthers during a formation flying exercise in May 1942 probably as a result of a combination of bad weather and a slight navigation error.

The efforts of the local National Park staff in the Brecons to prevent the activities of magpies (as previously reported) are probably the reason for this being our most extensive Spitfire wreckage visited to date.

Location: SO 01677 18458

Avro Lancaster W4929 Coded AJ-J

Lancaster
Originally uploaded by seansonofbig

Six straight hours of being rained on whilst tramping through a bog yielded only one find yesterday, the crash site and this memorial to the crew of a bomber downed (for reasons still unknown) north of Fan Foel in the Brecon Beacons.

We failed to find anything at the Moel Feity Liberator site reasonably nearby, but visibility was poor, and other excuses.

The poppy wreath is from the inmates of Swansea Prison. Anyone know why?

Location: SN 82792 23892

Avro Lancaster W4929 Coded AJ-J

AVRO LANCASTER W4929 CODED AJ-J
Originally uploaded by seansonofbig

The bent crankshafts from two Merlin engines in the foreground and just behind Mick are some of the largest bits in this 4m by 20m scar left in the hillside by the impact of a Lancaster bomber.

Location: SN 82793 23892

We have received the following information about this site from the aircrew remembrance society:

Lancaster W4929 H.C.U. crashed on the 5th September 1943 with the loss of all the crew:

Took off from Winthorpe for a night cross country training flight. They flew into a heavy storm over the Brecon Beacons and crashed at 23.20hrs.

Two of the commonwealth crew are buried in Hereford Cemetery (F/O Folkersen R.C.A.F. Fl/Sgt. Buckby R.A.A.F.), Sgt Curran was interred in Bath Cemetery. P/O Duxbury and Sgt Holding are buried in Standish, Wigan. Sgt Wilson is buried in Clitheroe Cemetery, Sgt Pratt at Hemel Hempstead, P/O Johnson D.F.M. was cremated at Woking Crematorium.

Anson Mk. 1 L9149 Memorial; Glyntawe, Brecon Beacons

Anson Memorial
Originally uploaded by seansonofbig

In the churchyard in Glyntawe, this memorial was erected to commemorate the 1939 crash of Anson L9149, and to thank those who took part in the rescue operation.

Though the military personnel on board perished, two civilian passengers survived. We'll give more info on this crash when we have visited the site.

We just visited this because it was close to where we parked, before setting out for a 10 mile circular walk on Black Mountain, to pick up a couple of Wellington wreck sites, and practice navigation in unfamiliar surroundings.

We liked the Brecon Beacons and we'll be back, but it's a long drive from Derbyshire, it made for an eighteen hour day. We won't be doing it every week!

Location: SN 84956 16920

Armstrong Vickers Wellington BJ697

Wellington BJ697
Originally uploaded by seansonofbig

All that is left at the September 1942 crash site of the Wellington from 12 Operational Training Unit, Chipping Warden. No sign of the exploded ammo reported by others. Souvenir hunters!

"GPSWalker" unusually gave the the most accurate position for this site, prior to ours:

Location: SN 83250 18390

More info

Armstrong Vickers Wellington Mk 10 MF509

Wellington MF509
Originally uploaded by seansonofbig

The extensive remains of this RCAF Wellington on Carreg Goch, Black Mountain, Brecon Beacons, with memorial in the foreground.

A little documentary video can be seen at the link below. Nice that the National Park staff coordinated opposition to it being taken away to someone's garden in Preston, rather than colluding in it, as we are told they did in Snowdonia.

Location: SN 81618 16921

More info