ALFRED DAMEN COLLECTION
No. 13905. Hawker Sea Fury FB.Mk.51 (6-27 c/n 6294) Royal Netherlands Navy
Photographed on HMS Illustrious, September 3, 1953

Hawker Sea Fury FB.Mk.51

01/31/2021. Remarks by Johan Visschedijk: "Built under license by Fokker, this aircraft was taken on charge by the RNethN on September 21, 1951. It was operated by No. 860 Squadron of the MLD for less than two years, as it was lost on September 3, 1953.

Landing on the British carrier HMS Illustrious, this Sea Fury, flown by the Dutch pilot Willem de Kluizenaar, missed all cables and was catched by the barrier. As the aircraft had drifted too far to the left, the left wing was clipped by the upright of the barrier, and spilled fuel from the wing tank ignited. The pilot broke his ankle when he jumped from the aircraft. The aircraft was cannibalized and subsequently dumped overboard.

Pilot de Kluizenaar later became a Grumman Tracker pilot, and in 1967 he was promoted squadron commander of VSQ-2 (Vliegtuigensquadron 2, Aircraft Squadron 2).

Read the type remarks on page 9414.


Created January 31, 2021