Site Event/Activity record ECH6163 - Mustang I AG505 - Manley Old Hall Farm, Manley, Near Mouldsworth, Cheshire

Investigation and excavation of the crash site of an early RAF Mustang I aircraft (NA-73), serial number AG505, construction number 73-3260. The work was undertaken by the Lancashire Aircraft Investigation Team with the excavation occurring on 31st May 2014. The crash site lies in a sloping grass meadow field immediately to the north of Sugar Lane, Manley, near Mouldsworth, Cheshire. The impact point is in a relatively flat part of the field with no observable disturbance to the ground. The crash site of AG505 was discovered whilst searching for the crash site of Westland Wyvern VZ779 which crashed in 1954 on land at Manley Old Hall Farm. During a visit to the site the investigation team were shown the general area of an earlier wartime crash by the landowner, whose father was a witness to the incident. This led to an initial metal detector survey of the area which soon pinpointed a site with numerous non ferrous targets characteristic of a crash site. A selection of the objects were uncovered and were identified as small parts of aircraft. Reference to records of aircraft incidents revealed only one likely wartime candidate for the crash site - Mustang I, AG505. A second survey of the impact area was undertaken using a Fisher Gemini III two-box deep seeking detector and a Foerster Ferex 4.021 magnetometer. This survey revealed a small area of concentrated remains at a depth of about two to three feet. Excavation of the impact site was undertaken by hand on 31st May 2014. Layers of ash and Daz (distinctive blue/white deposits of broken down aluminium) showed that a portion of the aircraft had become embedded in the ground and had burned underground for some time, reaching very high temperatures. The bulk of the aircraft and engine had clearly been recovered after the crash but the embedded part of the engine had remained, including the crankshaft which was found at an angle of circa 50 degrees. There was also a significant scatter of surface fragments implying the aircraft had broken up significantly on impact. (1)