Republic P-47D 42-7897 of the 6th Fighter Wing crashed on Ffrith Dreborth close to Glyndyfrdwy, Llangollen on the 18th July 1943
| Raymond A. Sprague | 2nd Lieutenant | Pilot | Killed |
The pilot was on a local flying exercise from Atcham near Shrewsbury with three other P-47s when his aircraft crashed on high ground. The investigating officer found that the fuel supply had been switched from the main tank to the auxiliary which together with a statement from a person on the ground suggested the aircraft was possibly suffering from an engine related problem, also the flaps had been lowered.
The first part of the aircraft to touch the ground was the tail, followed about 100 yards later by the propeller. Shortly after the aircraft began to break up, with the tail detaching close to the turbocharger and the engine coming away from its mounts. The wings broke off and the remaining part of the fuselage rolled down the slope, the pilot and his seat were thrown from the cockpit.
The cause of the engine failure was not determined by the investigating officer.
The aircraft was the sister ship to one of the two that flew in Cats Tor in the Peak District 74 days later on the 30th September 1943. Both aircraft were based at Atcham but operated by different units, although these units merged at the end of 1943 to form the 495 Fighter Training Group and prior to that the aircraft were used by both units.
