The Kenya Lincoln crash (SX984 )

On 19 February 1955 a 49 Squadron crew flew low over the Githunguri police post and during a second pass the aircraft's tail struck the boundary fence. It then went into a severe vertical climb before stalling out onto an African 'shamba'. In the sickening carnage, four Africans and all six crew members onboard were killed.

The attached files of newspaper articles, documents and photographs are kindly provided by Richard Bartlett-May, the son of Sgt Bartlett.

F/O Hunt (Pilot) (Killed)
Sgt North (Flight Engineer )(Killed)
Sgt Hollands (Signaller) (Killed)
Sgt Bartlett (Air Gunner) (Killed)
F/O King (Navigator) (Killed)
F/O Parry (Navigator) (Killed)

 Click the icon opposite to open the file or
'Right click' and choose 'Save Target As'.


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 In August 2009 Richard Bartlett-May visited the scene of the crash.
His photographs, with captions, are shown below.
Additional B&W images have been supplied
by Arthur Williamson (former Police Chief at Githunguri)
and Dick Matthews who was the District Officer at Githunguri.

 Houses at the top of the hill near Githunguri Police Station
They are in the same location of the original 'rondavels' that were hit

 

Githunguri Police Station Sign

The actual crash site. I am standing next to a lady called Peris.
Peris witnessed the accident and we are standing on the spot
where SX984 crashed.
She also informed me that SX984 after hitting the building
was on fire before it crashed.
The gentleman to the right of me lived in Githunguri in 1955.
His father was an engineer installing a water pipeline to the town.
He remembered seeing the Lincolns fly over the police station
on their way back from the Aberdares but didn’t witness the SX984 accident.

 

 Richard and Peris
Click this link to view a YouTube video interview of her eye witness account

 

Margaret (Peris’s daughter), Peris's husband and Richard.
Peris's husband’s brother carried my father from where he was
found to the Military Land Rover

 

Oldest Brick House in Githunguri. SX984 crashed 100 yds from this house
where Peris and her husband still live

View of the hill top which SX984 hit at the Githunguri Police Station
taken from the crash site

 Image courtesy of Arthur Williamson
The circle shows the buildings hit by SX984

Image courtesy of Dick Matthews
A close up of the buildings

 Image courtesy of Dick Matthews
The crash site

 Image courtesy of Dick Matthews
The crash site

 Image courtesy of Dick Matthews
Parts of the rudder caught up in the barbed wire fence
that surrounded the camp

That day SX984 was bombing the Kipipiri Forest.
I would well imagine Githunguri was a waypoint for the Navigator
on the way to and from the Kipipiri Forest.

Click for an enlarged view (in a new window)

Click for an enlarged view (in a new window)

Githunguri in Kikuyu means hill and after visiting the site
I can see why it was chosen as a police post and
why one would use it as a waypoint for navigation.
(click on either map for an enlargement)

Read the eye witness account of Ian Fox who at the time
was in charge of a remote Police Post within the Githunguri Division

(opens in a new window)
 

After much research Richard Bartlett-May has been able to obtain the official
MOD Accident Aircraft Record Card shown below.

Images courtesy of Richard Bartlett-May

 Images courtesy of Richard Bartlett-May
Click on either image to open a larger view (in a new window)

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