Consolidated Catalina Mk.IVB JX273 of No.302 Ferry Training Unit flew into Theiseabhal Beag on Vatersay on the 12th May 1944
| David Johnston Robertson Clyne | Warrant Officer | Pilot | Killed |
| Edmand Ainsworth Kilshaw | Sergeant | Co-pilot | Survived |
| P. Lee | Sergeant | Navigator | Survived |
| Roy Beavis | Sergeant | Flight Engineer | Survived |
| R. Whiting | Sergeant | Flight Mechanic | Survived |
| Patrick William Noel Hine | Sergeant | Flight Mechanic / Air Gunner | Killed |
| Alfred Ronald Anstey | Sergeant | Wireless Operator / Air Gunner | Survived |
| Frederick James Bassett | Sergeant | Wireless Operator / Air Gunner | Killed |
| G. Calder | Sergeant | Wireless Operator / Air Gunner | Survived |
The crew of JX273 were on a night navigation training flight from Oban. Having taken off from there the pilots set course for the first turning point at Barra Head on Berneray, the southern most of the Outer Hebridies. At close to their expected time of arrival at Barra Head the navigator checked the course they were flying and realised they were to the north of track. He instructed the pilots to commence a climb to avoid high ground on the islands they were approaching. Before the aircraft had gained much height it struck the ground close to the summit of Theiseabhal Beag on the eastern side of the island of Vatersay. Three of the crew were killed in the crash or died of their injuries soon afterwards. The remaining crew were attended to by residents of Vatersay until the assistance came by lifeboat from the neighbouring (now causewayed) island of Barra. The three who died were buried in their home towns.
The task of clearing the crash site fell to No.56 Maintenance Unit at Inverness, who during July sent a 12 man party to the site to break up the wreckage. After arriving in Castlebay they used a private boat and the lifeboat to reach Vatersay. Over the next three weeks they broke up the wreck, recovering the armament and much of the radio & radar equipment along with the engines. The hull and wings were cut up and dragged down the hill being weighed down with boulders below the road on the island where much of it still remains.
