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Registration or Serial: N6438
Operator:
RAF; (2 Flying
Instructor School (2 FIS)); Later, No. 2 FIS at British Commonwealth
Air Training Plan Schools - Canada.
(To prevent the Luftwaffe
targeting vulnerable training aircraft and their pilots,
FIS units were moved to Canada, South Africa, and
the former Rhodesia)
Operating Base:
RAF Dalcross
(until transferred to Canada)
Base
Location:
Dalcross, Inverness, Scotland
Current Airport Status:
Operational Civil Airport.
Current Airport Name:
Inverness
Airport /
Port-adhair Inbhir
Nis (EGPE)
(Principal airport data courtesy of
John Woodside,
A
Catalogue of UK Airfields)
Aircraft Type Nickname:
"Ox-Box"
Aircraft Type & Background
The Airspeed Oxford was developed from
of the Airspeed AS.6 Envoy commercial aircraft as an RAF trainer.
The Oxford was equipped with two 355hp - 375hp seven cylinder air-cooled
Armstrong-Siddeley Cheetah IX or X radial engines.
Essentially, this was a 3-seater
aircraft, but provision was made for up to 6 crew. The aircraft was
equipped with dual controls for pilot training purposes, but these
could be removed for bombardier training.
Several other crew training roles were
also covered by the Airspeed Oxford, preparing air crew for entry
into RAF Bomber Command.
At least eight variants of the Airspeed
Oxford were produced. In addition to those produced by Airspeed
Ltd., some of these aircraft were built by sub-contractors such as
de-Havilland, Percival, and Standard Motors. The Mark I Oxford was
equipped with an Armstrong-Whitworth dorsal turret, but all
subsequent variants lacked this feature.
In addition to their role as an advanced
trainers, Oxfords were used as communications, anti-aircraft, and
anti-submarine aircraft, and also as air ambulances.
Aircraft Accident Details
On 3rd
September 1942, Airspeed Oxford N6438 of 2 Flying Instructor
School (2 FIS) hit the hill in cloud. P/O John Keddie
was killed in the accident, but P/O
White—although
injured—escaped.
P/O Keddie
was buried at Sleepyhillock Cemetery in Montrose.
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