List of accidents and incidents involving the Avro Shackleton

Avro Shackleton

Industry	Military aviation

File:Avro Shackleton MR3 in flight c1955.jpg

Shackleton MR.3 WR970, which crashed in Derbyshire in 1956.

Comprehensive record of mishaps involving the Avro Shackleton, a four-engine maritime patrol aircraft later adapted for airborne early warning duties.

1950s

• On 12 August 1951, Shackleton MR.1 VP283 from No. 224 Squadron RAF plunged into the sea after experiencing landing gear failure during final approach to RAF Gibraltar.
• On 25 June 1952, Shackleton MR.1 VP261, operated by No. 240 Squadron RAF, crashed into the sea near Berwick on Tweed, resulting in the loss of all eleven crew members. The aircraft was conducting simulated attacks on submarine HMS Sirdar when it descended uncontrollably and struck the water. At that time, the plane was assigned to No. 120 Squadron RAF.
• Shackleton MR.1 VP286 from No. 236 Operational Conversion Unit RAF went down off Tarbat Head, Cromarty on 8 October 1952, killing all fourteen personnel aboard.
• On 14 May 1953, Shackleton MR.2 WL749 of No. 120 Squadron RAF suffered irreparable damage following collapse of its port landing gear during touchdown at RAF Aldergrove, Northern Ireland.
• The Shackleton MR.2 WL746 crashed into the sea near Argyll, Scotland on 11 December 1953, with no survivors among the ten crew members.
• On 12 February 1954, Shackleton MR.2 WL794 belonging to No. 38 Squadron RAF was lost over the Mediterranean Sea near Gozo, resulting in the deaths of all ten onboard.
• Two Shackleton MR.2s, WG531 and WL743, both from No. 42 Squadron RAF, disappeared on 11 January 1955 and are believed to have collided mid-flight. Eighteen aircrew were presumed killed after both aircraft vanished during a routine exercise off Fastnet Rock on Ireland’s southwest coast. Departing from RAF St Eval at 10:14 and 10:20 respectively, they maintained the required separation distance throughout their patrol until contact ceased at 20:58. Despite an extensive three-day search, no wreckage was found initially; however, in 1966, the starboard outer (#4) engine of WL743 was recovered approximately 75 miles north of the originally assumed collision site.
• On 22 December 1955, Shackleton MR.2 WL799 was destroyed by a fire while housed in a hangar at Langar.
• A trials aircraft, Shackleton MR.3 WR970, crashed at Foolow, Derbyshire on 7 December 1956, killing all four crew members aboard.
• During an air display at Gibraltar on 14 September 1957, Shackleton MR.2 WL792 of No. 224 Squadron RAF crashed.
• Shackleton T.4 VP259 from the Maritime Operational Training Unit, RAF crashed at Heldon Hill near Elgin on 10 January 1958, resulting in fatalities for both crew members.
• On 9 December 1958, Shackleton MR.1 VP254 of No. 205 Squadron RAF crashed into the South China Sea with all ten onboard perishing. Some eyewitness accounts suggest this aircraft may have been shot down.

1960s

File:In memory of the Shakleton 1718 crew, South Africa 1963.jpg

Tribute to the crew of Shackleton MR.3 1718 (1963, South Africa)

• On 20 May 1961, Shackleton MR.1A WB818 suffered a ground accident at RAF Gan; it was subsequently flown to RAF Seletar and retired from service.
• Shackleton MR.2 WR968 crashed at RAF Ballykelly on 20 October 1961 and was destroyed by fire.
• On 15 May 1962, Shackleton MR.1 VP294 was damaged beyond repair during a landing at RAF Gan.
• The South African Air Force's Shackleton MR.3 1718 crashed in the Wemmershoek Mountains on 8 August 1963, resulting in the loss of all 13 personnel aboard.
• Shackleton MR.3 XF710 crash-landed on Culloden Moor, Scotland, following an engine fire on 10 January 1964; the entire crew escaped unharmed and observed the aircraft burn out.
• On 8 December 1965, Shackleton MR.3 XF704 crashed into the Moray Firth, Scotland, during a local training sortie from RAF Kinloss, killing all seven crew members from 201 Squadron.
• Shackleton T.4 WB831 of the Maritime Operational Training Unit, RAF, sank back onto the runway after premature retraction of landing gear during takeoff from RAF St. Mawgan, Cornwall, on 17 May 1967.
• An engine fire caused Shackleton MR.2 WL786 to crash into the sea approximately 120 miles west of Lhokkruet, Indonesia, on 5 November 1967; eight fatalities occurred with three survivors including the flight engineer, a signaller, and a passenger en route to his son's wedding in Singapore.
• During a low-level anti-submarine exercise on 19 November 1967, Shackleton MR.3 WR976 crashed into the sea off Land's End; nine crew members died while two survived.
• On 21 December 1967, Shackleton MR.3 XF702 crashed at Creag Bhan near Inverness, Scotland.
• Shackleton Mk 2 WR956 skidded off the runway under wet conditions while landing at RAF Ballykelly on 1 April 1968 and was subsequently written off.
• The prototype Shackleton T.2 WB833 of No. 204 Squadron RAF collided with rising terrain on the Mull of Kintyre, Scotland, amid poor weather on 19 April 1968; all eleven occupants perished.

1990s

File:SAAF Avro Shackleton MR3 Shevelev-2.jpg

Crash site of 1716 in the Moroccan Sahara, photographed in 2010

• On 30 April 1990, Shackleton AEW.2 WR965 from No. 8 Squadron RAF crashed in the Outer Hebrides. The aircraft impacted a hill on the Isle of Harris during adverse weather conditions, resulting in ten fatalities.
• Shackleton MR.3 1716, formerly operated by the South African Air Force, made an emergency landing in the Sahara Desert on 13 July 1994 after suffering failure of two engines while en route to the United Kingdom.

Footnotes

Bibliography

• Jones, Barry. Avro Shackleton. Marlborough, United Kingdom, 2002. ISBN 978-1-86126-449-7.