Smirl, Glendon Arthur (Sergeant)

77 Squadron (Esse Potius Quam Videri). The crew of Halifax III aircraft MZ 768 KN-Q were engaged in a flying exercise and the aircraft was seen to explode in mid-air at Kirby-UnderDale, Yorkshire. Sergeant D.W. MacKinnon, P/O(s) N.H. Groh, D.F. Connolly, J.T. Yeomans, F.S. Marcellus, and one RAF crewman, Sergeant H. Ashwell, were also killed. Addendum: - The crew were on a fighter affiliation exercise against a Spitfire. They commenced their corkscrew with a steep diving turn; whereupon a wing folded back. The aircraft did not explode but went in relatively intact, making a large crater one mile from the church at Kirby-Underdale, Yorkshire. Detail provided by N. Ford, Cornwall, Ontario. Addendum: The squadron was based at Elvington when aircraft No. MZ 768 exploded. Sgt. H. Ashwell(RAF) was also killed. This completes this crew list. Detail from "Some Of The Many" by Roy Walker, Kent, England. SMITH, A.R. 84922 See page 702. This s/n belongs to A.R. Ross. There is no grave record of an A.R. Smith killed on this date.