Catalaina enquiry

[vikkim]

Sorry if i am doing this all wrong, but i am new to this and i don't know about planes either. A ancestor of mine was on a Catalina on the 23rd July 1941 and it crashed/sank was lost, any ideas how i can find out any more, He was Reginald John Louis Larwood a Sergeant Wireless operator and i think he flew from the Seychelles. I know he is listed on the memorial in Singapore and in his home town, but how come this plane came down and everyone died.
Thanks

 

[fubar57]

Larwood-Reginald-John-Louis

 

[fubar57]

Catalinas from 205 Squadron, Apr. '42

Public Domain​

 

[Hardlydank]

Here is some info I found. The crew listing is confirmed by Fubar57's post. "Flight Lieutenant E W Young, Flying Officer A T Grieve, Flight Sergeant B D Lyon, Sergeant J G Bishop, Flight Sergeant C M Williamson, Flight Sergeant R J L Larwood, Flight Sergeant P J Magee, Sergeant F Griffin, Leading Aircraftman R C Hoddel, Aircraftman J A Skinner: missing believed killed; aircraft crashed at sea off the coast of Port Victoria, Seychelles, Catalina W8426, 205 Squadron, 23 July 1941''(rafcommands.com). Catalina W8426 was delivered on May 26, 41, 58 days before it crashed. No one really knows why they crashed it seems.
Sources: Catalina I W8426 [Royal Air Force Aircraft Serial and Image Database], ADF Serials Message Board -> PBY-4 Histories

Welcome to the forum btw

 

[vikkim]

Thank you so very much, especially for the photograph, i suppose there were so many losses that they were not all investigated.

 

[XBe02Drvr]

Here's a thought on the Catalina crash. Catalinas and most other amphibious 'boats didn't take too kindly to attempting a water landing with their wheel landing gear down. This led to it "stubbing its toe" as it were, and plowing into the water nose low at high speed, with structural failures, ruptured fuel tanks and general disintegration. Crews that had been flying non-amphibious flying boats and crews that had been flying land based patrol planes both sometimes landed their shiny new amphibs in the wrong configuration, which could be merely embarrassing on land, but disastrous at sea.