Fairey Swordfish V4554

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Aircraft Type Photo

BELOW: A Fairey Swordfish torpedo bomber similar to that featured here. Note the torpedo slung underneath.

Fairey Swordfish at UK Flying Display in 2002

Photo: 2002 Mr. Peter Noble. UK Flying Displays and Museums. Courtesy, Wikipedia. GNU Free Documentation License

Aircraft Type and Background

RN (FAA / NAS) Fairey Swordfish / V4554

(Torpedo bomber)

Aircraft Type Nickname: "Stringbag"; "Blackfish"

Designed originally as a 3-seater reconnaissance aircraft, and equipped with a Bristol Pegasus nine cylinder radial engine, the Swordfish was converted later to a torpedo bomber.

By the time WWII arrived, this large bi-plane had become obsolete. Nevertheless, it was used with great effect against several targets during WWII, including attacks on Norway and against the German battleship, Bismarck.

Six Swordfish aircraft were involved in action against the German warships, Scharnhorst, Gneisenau and Prinz Eugen. All, however, were shot down by covering German fighters.

Fairey Swordfish V4554 (featured here) had been delivered to Royal Naval Air Station (RNAS) Eastleigh on 17 July 1941. In September 1941, V4554 was delivered to the storage section of RNAS Donibristle near Cowdenbeath in Fife. Subsequently, on 1 November 1941, this Swordfish was taken from storage and delivered to Fleet Air Arm (FAA) No. 823 Squadron. [SH]

BELOW: The cockpit of a Fairey Swordfish showing instruments and controls.

view of fairey swordfish cockpit instruments

Photo: 2008 'GJC1'. Released by the author under Creative Commons License.

Aircraft Accident Details

Fairey Swordfish V4554, together with 3 others, was en-route from Fraserburgh to RAF Machrihanish, near Campbeltown in Argyll. The pilot was Sub/Lt J. A. King. However, due to a shortage of fuel, the other three Swordfish aircraft crashed near Alexandria in Dunbartonshire, not far from Balloch by Loch Lomond and several miles N of the River Clyde. The fourth Swordfish, featured here, managed to stay in the air for a few miles further, crossing to the south side of the Clyde and crashing eventually somewhere around Calder Dam, or in the vicinity of Queenside Muir / Duchal Moor in the Renfrewshire Heights.

According to a report by Mr. A. McKellar—who was standing close to the summit of Windy Hill at the time of the accident—the very low flying Swordfish passed almost directly overhead. However, as there were heavy snowfalls and drifts at the time, Mr. McKellar was unaware that the aircraft had crashed shortly afterward. Indeed, it was only about 3 weeks later that the aircraft wreck was finally discovered. Mr. R. Fleming, the McKellar family's shepherd, was out searching for sheep lost on the snowbound moors. According to Mr. Fleming, he found the wreck, together with the dead airmen, lying between Queenside Muir and Duchal Moor.

According to another report, the aircraft lay on the hillside undiscovered for about 12 days. Eventually, however, police and local volunteers assisting in the search found the wreck. The three airmen were removed, and the main wreckage was removed by an RAF recovery team.

Aircraft Crew Casualties

Those who died in this accident were:

Sub/Lt John Abbot King (22), Pilot (RNVR).
Leading Air Fitter Richard Glenyster Williams (20)
Air Fitter Norman Frederick Matthews (21)

Crash Site Photos

BELOW: This photo was taken at Dumfries and Galloway Aviation Museum and shows a propeller shaft from a Fairey Swordfish crash near Langholm in that region.

propeller shaft from swordfish crash at langholm. Shaft now in dumfries and galloway aviation museum

Photo Gallery

There are no photos available of this aircraft crash site in the Photo Gallery.

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Crash Date / Site

Accident Date: 30 Jan 1942

Accident Site:

Calder Dam / Duchal Moor area

(exact location unknown)

Region: Renfrewshire (Clyde Muirshiel Regional Park)

Nearest town or village:

Lochwinnoch

Nearest large towns:

Kilmacolm (N) or Kilbirnie (S)

OS Grid Ref. N/A

GPS Ref: N/A

Present Condition: Very little, if any, remains to be found on site. Fragments of the aircraft were discovered by Muirshiel Park rangers near Old Calder Dam in 1988.