Peak District Air Accident Research

North American Mustang Mk.I AG586 of No.613 (City of Manchester) Squadron RAF crashed on Fountains Earth Moor near Pateley Bridge on the 15th December 1942.

The aircraft shown above is an A-36, outwardly almost the same as a Mustang Mk.I.

The pilot was on a formation flying exercise from RAF Ouston in Northumberland, in poor weather he became separated from the rest of the flight and being unable to locate his position he abandoned the aircraft which then dived into the soft moorland and was destroyed.

A surprising amount of wreckage remains at the site, mainly due to a long running excavation of the site in the 1980s.

This photograph shows one of the undercarriage legs and sections of corroded wing spar.

The wreckage surrounds the now water filled crater where the aircraft crashed.

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