Handley Page Halifax

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Handley Page Halifax C.8 PP219 MK8 March 1945

Handley Page Halifax C.Mk.VIII: Built for the RAF as PP219. Sold on and civil registered as G-AKBA on 11 July 1947 to Airtech Ltd., Haddenham (Thame) Airport, near Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire. Sold on 5 May 1948 to Alpha Airways (Pty) Ltd, with owners address stated as being "Joannesburg, South Africa". Some sources indicate that the Halifax was leased rather than purchased.

Written off (damaged beyond repair) 25 May 1948 when crashed at Albacete Airport, Albacete Castile-La Mancha, Spain. The crew was engaged in carrying a cargo of 6,000 kilos of apricots to Bovingdon, Hertfordshire. Only 3 of the 4 engines were operational but the pilot, Denis Parsons, thought take off was possible. Unfortunately, on take-off, a patch of sand was encountered on the runway. Denis Parsons, a calm for RAF pilot was reported as saying "Oh dear". The undercarriage collapsed. All four crew survived unharmed.

The radio officer's daughter has post crash photos and his log book giving date and time of the crash. Other details such as sand, engine, Denis Parsons' opinion are all verbally reported by the radio officer to his daughter and other family.

Registration G-AKBA cancelled by the CAA on 25.5.1948 (same day as the accident) due to "destruction or permanent withdrawl from use of the aircraft"





  1. Incident Handley Page Halifax C.8 G-AKBA,
  2. HANDLEY PAGE HALIFAX - ORIGINAL AVIATION PHOTO-MOYES & BOWYER COLLECTIONS | eBay
  3. HANDLEY PAGE HALIFAX - ORIGINAL AVIATION PHOTO-MOYES & BOWYER COLLECTIONS | eBay
 
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"Oh dear."
 
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Airframes: The 'French' Halifax is from one of two Free French squadrons originally in the RAF, both based at Elvington, Yorkshire, UK.
These were 346 (G.B 2/23 'Guyenne') Sqn, and 347 ( G.B. 1/25 'Tunisie') Sqn., made up of French personnel transferred from North Africa, forming in May and June 1944 respectively.
In October 1945, both Squadrons moved to France, with their Halifaxes, passing into the control of the Armee de l'Air in November 1945.
Free French units operating other Allied aircraft types also returned to France, continuing operation of the aircraft until such time as domestic-produced aircraft were available from the re-built French aviation industry in the 1950s, with some types, such as the Lancaster in the Aeronavale units, and A-26 attack aircraft, for example, continuing in service until the early 1960's.





  1. Handley Page Halifax
  2. Original WW2 Press Photo All French Bomber Crew Feb 1945 347 SQN | eBay
 
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These were not Free French units, but former Vichy bomb groups that were retrained and engaged with the RAF in England on heavy bomber. In fact, after the Dakar attack, GB II/23 raised several retaliation raids against Gibraltar on september 25 and 26, 1940.
 
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Frog said:
Merlin engined.
Click to expand...
yes, Halifax Mk.II Series IA, the last variant of the Merlin engined Halifax in production, as the next step was re-engining the Mk.II with the Hercules engine, producing the Mk.III. The Mk.III prototype was a modified Mk.II. This mark of Halifax pictured had the Morris block radiators to overcome the overheating issues the type suffered at heavy loads, particularly in the climb after take-off.
Airframes said:
And two different aircraft (unless the first pic was taken after the fins were replaced with the later type), the second pic being taken on a US B-17 base.
Click to expand...

Yes, most likely different aircraft, although still a Mk.II as it's fitted with H2S and no nose turret. The later production Mk.IIs were retrofitted with the D Type rudder under Mod 814, on the production line, then the aircraft already in service.
 
Snautzer01 said:
H2s Hercules engines Mk3 Januari 1944

Click to expand...

This is most likely either HX226, the first production Mk.III proper, the prototype was a Mk.II airframe R9534 modified, HX227 or HX229. If it is HX226 it has the yellow P-in-a-circle that denoted a prototype aircraft forward of the fuselage roundel, but it's not visible. Based on its fresh condition, it is possibly one of the latter as HX226 was at Boscombe Down, where such photographs were taken for identification purposes by the A&AEE Photographic Section, after September 1943 and it had been extensively tested. By January 1944 HX226 probably would not have looked so fresh.
 
H2S dome



WWII USAAF 429th Bomb Squad Original Veteran's Photographs N Africa & Italy 1943 | eBay

The Squadron flew B-17 Flying Fortresses and Corporal Brown was part of the ground crew that kept them in the air. Unbelievably the plane was later put back into service but was lost shortly thereafter in a takeoff accident.
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Right : Paris, Arc de triomphe de l'Etoile, La Marseillaise by François Rude
 

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