Supermarine Spitfire Mk.I K9888 of No.41 Squadron, RAF, flew into Great Dun Fell on the 18th July 1939
| Kenneth Mitchell | Sergeant | Pilot | Killed |
Sergeant Mitchell was on a flight from Catterick in North Yorkshire to Dumfries, he had taken off at around 10:55 and had flown west via Bowes where he entered into a log that he had passed at 11:09, three minutes after this he recorded that cloud was 10/10ths with very poor visibility, at the expected cruising speed he was travelling at this would have been in the area between Brough and Appleby.
The aircraft was heard, and then briefly seen, by a worker at the Silver Band Baryte mine on the north western flank of Great Dun Fell followed almost immediately by the sound of it crashing into the hillside a short way to the south of the mine. The worker was asked by the Coroner at the inquest where the aircraft had approached from but he was unable to say, however to have seen the aircraft in what was described as 30-40 yard visibility it must have approached from either the north or north-west, this would possibly indicate that Sgt Mitchell had turned back after encountering poor weather.
