Who were Captain M. Evans, Lt. H.Stokes, &Sgt. F. Filmore

[Alan Bentley]

These three were all killed together in an RAF flying accident in May 1919.

I know this is outside the 1914-1918 bracket, but are there further details of them and their fate?

[busterfield]

From the CWGC site : https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2757122/evans,-llewellyn-lewis-meredith/

 and from there : http://www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/rollofhonour/People/Details/14601

The date of death matches on CWGc matches H. Stokes.

CWGC also has FILLMORE, REGINALD FRANK, serjeant. All three died 9/May/1919

Edited 29 March , 2018 by busterfield

[hmsk212]

Hi,

 

Try this link

 

http://www.rcawsey.co.uk/Acc1919.htm

 

Steve

[busterfield]

A bit more : Lt. Henry Stokes, drowned 1919 - Sussex History Forum

If you paste the above into google there is an article on the accident.

[Alan Bentley]

Thanks to all for the very rapid response. This cutting from my father's scrap book gives the explanation. Dated 24-2-21

Now I have to find if he knew these men. Why were three men in a two seat a/c, and was this the cause of the ditching?

[topgun1918]

I have them listed as:

 

Lt Llewellyn Lewis Meredith Evans AFC, buried Springfield (Holy Trinity) Churchyard

Lt Henry J E Stokes, buried Margate Cemetery

No 1479 Sergt Reginald Frank Fillmore, buried Oxford (Osney St Mary's) Cemetery

 

I have them down as being in Bristol F2B F4838 from the AAP Lympne - but three in a two-seater?

 

Graeme

 

[Alan Bentley]

Fillmore, Sgt. Pilot 1479

Stokes, Lt. 10340

Evans originally RFC

My father was 200287 RNAS/RAF. At the time of this crash he was stationed at Longside on airships having served at least three years with 2 Wing RNAS in Greece. Can't see any connection yet.

 

[topgun1918]

To avoid any confusion, Llewellyn Lewis Meredith Evans received the Air Force Cross (London Gazette number 30722, page 6520), hence the 'AFC' after his name in my earlier post; this was not a reference to the Australian Flying Corps.

 

Graeme

 

[Alan Bentley]

These pictures are on the same album page as the newspaper cutting. Could this be the undercart from  The Bristol Fighter , and is this a Falcon Series 3 engine?.

Experts please!

[pete-c]

The engine appears to be a RR Falcon although it's missing its carburettors and inlet manifolds.   Also the drive arrangement and engine mountings appear to be wrong for an aircraft.   It has obviously been submerged for some time so I am wondering if this engine is from an airship that had to ditch.

[josquin]

10 hours ago, topgun1918 said:

I have them listed as:

 

Lt Llewellyn Lewis Meredith Evans AFC, buried Springfield (Holy Trinity) Churchyard

Lt Henry J E Stokes, buried Margate Cemetery

No 1479 Sergt Reginald Frank Fillmore, buried Oxford (Osney St Mary's) Cemetery

 

I have them down as being in Bristol F2B F4838 from the AAP Lympne - but three in a two-seater?

 

Graeme

Lt. Henry John Edgar Stokes

 

Josquin

 

[Guest]

Hi, I've just come across this post whilst doing some family history research.

Reginald Frank Fillmore was my Great Uncle and I have further information about the accident if you are still looking into this.I realise this post was from March and so you may not be looking into it now

Kind Regards

Kay

[Alan Bentley]

Any info would be interesting. I am trying to find out why my father was interested in this tragedy.

[josquin]

Alan,

The London Gazette dated 15 February 1917 records that Reginald Frank Fillmore, then an Air Mechanic-1st Class, was awarded the Gold Cross by

the nation of Serbia.  Serbia was a member of the Entente coalition fighting in Salonika/Macedonia, so I suggest that your father and Sgt Fillmore had

served together some time during your father's 3 years in Greece.  Following is some additional biographical information about the three airmen.

--Sgt Reginald Frank Fillmore, the pilot on the day of the accident, was born in 1896, at Oxford City, Oxfordshire, was residing in Heston, Hounslow,

Middlesex in 1911, and was employed as a chauffeur and motor mechanic when he joined the Royal Flying Corps  on 11 August 1914 (as Air Mechanic

2nd Class, service number 1479).  Serving as a non-commissioned pilot in the war, he was a ferry pilot at 1 ASD on 1 January 1918, and was serving

with the Central Dispatch Pool, London, at the time of his loss  The Court of Inquiry following the accident reached a conclusion worth noting: 

"Sergeant Fillmore's action in attending to the magneto himself instead of reporting its defects to the aerodrome office was irregular in view of

the notice on the board outside the latter, the contents of which he must have been fully familiar.  The board are satisfied in view of Sgt. Fillmore's

experience as a pilot that the engine was OK when the machine left the ground at No. 1 ASD."  The wording implies that he decided to complete

the flight despite the presence of a problematic engine.  As has been mentioned on this thread, it does appear that the three airmen risked

overloading a two-seater aircraft and chose to make the flight despite a questionable engine. All three were serving as ferry pilots at the time,

and such overloading may have been a common practice to shorten the duration between departures and returns.

--Lieut.(Temporary Captain) Llewellyn Lewis Meredith Evans was born on 19 November 1897, at Brightsea, Essex, the son of a clergyman, and was

away at school, in Woksop, Nottinghamshire, in 1911.  Joining the Royal Flying Corps Special Reserve, he was commissioned a Probationary 2nd

Lieutenant on 27 May 1916, a Flying Officer on 7 August 1916, a Lieutenant on 1 August 1917, and a Temporary/Captain & Temporary/Flight Commander

on 1 March 1918.  He was posted to 2 ASD on 16 September 1916, to No. 2 Squadron, R.F.C. on 16 September 1916, and was awarded the Air Force  Cross

on 3 May 1918. He was serving with the R.A.F. Aircraft Acceptance Park, at Lympne, at the time of the accident

--Lieut. Henry John Edgar Stokes was born on 13 April 1895, at Folkestone, Kent and was living in Margate in 1901 and when he was commissioned

in the Royal Flying Corps as a Probationary 2nd Lieutenant on 13 April 1917.  Promoted to Flight Officer on 21 September 1917, he was serving with

the R.A.F. Aircraft. Acceptance Park, at Lympne, at the time of the accident.   

I hope thjis was helpful.

Regards.

Josquin

Edited 19 October , 2018 by josquin

[Alan Bentley]

Thanks very much for the very detailed information . I will now try to follow the Fillmore trail in the Aegean.

Best wishes

Alan

[nils d]

On ‎29‎/‎03‎/‎2018 at 13:45, Alan Bentley said:

Fillmore, Sgt. Pilot 1479

Stokes, Lt. 10340

Evans originally RFC

My father was 200287 RNAS/RAF. At the time of this crash he was stationed at Longside on airships having served at least three years with 2 Wing RNAS in Greece. Can't see any connection yet.

 

Is LOngside near the scene of the accident?

Or was your Father a mate of Sgt Fillmore?

[Alan Bentley]

Longside is in the North of Scotland, the accident was in the English Channel/ Straits of Dover. I have almost no written records of my father's service or his colleagues. All I have are his photo albums, but he obviously had some interest in this crew.

[josquin]

Alan,

The Royal Navy service records at the National Archives, Kew, state that George Henry Rogers, 200287, born at Newport, Hampshire 15 January 1883,

was commissioned a Signal Lieutenant Commander in the R.N. on 23 April 1912.  As a Royal Navy officer posted to the Macedonia/Aegean region

during the war, he would have been in a position to have contact with a wide variety of Navy and Army personnel serving in that theatre.  Returning

to Sgt. Reginald Fillmore's Serbian gallantry award, the Medal for Bravery was instituted in 1913 and was awarded to soldiers for acts of great

personal courage or for bravery in combat.  The Gold Medal was generally granted to officers and the Silver Medal to non-commissioned officers

and enlisted personnel.  Since Fillmore was an enlisted soldier (Air Mechanic 1st Class) when he was awarded a Gold Medal, his service must have

been distinguished to warrant the awarding of the higher degree of the medal.  Since Fillmore merited such a distinction, it is likely that  Signal Lieutenant Commander Rogers was familiar with the man and his record both in the Aegean and subsequently in the U.K.  

Josquin 

Edited 28 October , 2018 by josquin

[Alan Bentley]

Thanks for the info, there is some confusion in the Rogers record.

My fathers RNAS service no. was F287, later amended when the RAF absorbed the RFC & RNAS to 200287.