Auster A.O.P Mk.6 VF554 of No.663 Squadron, Royal Auxiliary Air Force, crashed near to Aber Falls in the Carneddau on the 21st October 1956

 

Auster J/1 Autocrat
Above is a photo of a J/1 Autocrat, a civil Auster that is outwardly similar to the A.O.P. Mk.6

 

Huw Morris Captain (Army) Pilot Injured

 

The aircraft was assigned to an RAuxAF Squadron but on the flight that ended in this crash was being flown by a Territorial Army pilot from the Royal Artillery. He had taken off to look for two Army Cadets who had been on a navigation exercise in the Carneddau. He had spotted the pair and was attempting to turn within the confines of the valley above Aber Falls when he encountered a strong downdraught. The aircraft crashed into a fairly level area beside the river and overturned, injuring the pilot who had to make his way off the hills with the Cadets he had gone in search of.

Crash site of Auster A.O.P. Mk.6 VF554 beside Afon Goch, Aber
There is no surface wreckage at this site, but from a photo taken at the time it is possible to tell exactly where the aircraft ended up. The aircraft came to rest just to the left of the rock outcrop and was inverted.

 

Below is wreckage beside Afon Goch taken in the 1960s, the framework was later seen towards the right of the image above before being recovered for a restoration project.

Wreckage near the crash site of Auster A.O.P. Mk.6 VF554 in the 1960s
Framework, spars and the engine at the crash site in the 1960s.
Image Copyright David Smith.