Operation: Cross country navigation exercise

Date: 11th November 1944 (Saturday)

Unit: No. 16 (NZ) Squadron

Type: Vought Corsair F41-1D

Serial: NZ5517

Code: 517

Base: RNZAF Ardmore, New Zealand

Location: Southern Alps, New Zealand

Pilot: P/O. Brian Kenneth Barstow NZ/438832 RNZAF Age 22. Missing - believed killed

REASON FOR LOSS:

On a training flight between Westport and Harewood as a group of four corsair aircraft led by F/O. Ernest Robert Reynolds in NZ5502. Three others followed, P/O. Brian Kenneth Barstow flying NZ5517, P/O. Norman Reeve in NZ5521 and P/O. Peter Charles Croxton Sheppard flying Corsair NZ5522.

During the exercise whilst flying at 5,000 ft P/O. Sheppard informed the leader that he was experiencing a problem with his engine and given permission to return.

Continuing up to 9,000ft Fl/Lt. Reynolds then decided it was best to keep the flight intact so decided to return to Westport during the turn NZ5517 was to the right of Fl/Lt. Reynolds and held it for half the turn, slowly falling out of formation.

Having lost sight of P/O. Barstow, Fl/Lt. Reynolds radioed him with the correct bearing to return to Westport-he failed to reply although both P/O. Sheppard and P/O. Reeve could hear him. After scanning numerous VHF channels P/O. Barstow failed to respond Fl/Lt. Reynolds assumed he had continued on to Harewood and contacted Central flying control centre to try and find him. By 13:00hrs no word had been received that P/O Barstow had turned up at Harewood. With visibility dropping to under a mile all hopes of an aerial search that afternoon were dashed.

A ground search was considered but being heavy bush country and not knowing more of its possible location nothing was attempted. Over the following days bad weather continued and some searches were made without success. Numerous searches and reported sightings over the years have occurred but yeilded nothing. Some hunters have sworn they have seen it and one said he stood on the wing of the Corsair

Nothing to this day has been found or NZ5517 or Brian Barstow. 16 squadron were about to go on a tour in the Solomon's hence some people thought there was a possibility P/O. Barstow had faked his death -This is now highly unlikely as a 1947 aerial photo shows NZ5517 in the hills somewhere northwest of Refton . Although this is not confirmed as the photo is not very clear and a search was recently carried out on its apparent 'Exact' spot but nothing was found. (Image shown below)

New Zealand Press 26th January 1988 - Crashed Corsair eludes search

'Near vertical terrain and almost impenetrable bush effectively stymied a week-long Air Force hunt on the West Coast for a wartime Corsair fighter that disappeared 43 years ago.

More than 30 students and instructors from the Physical Education School at Wigram took part in the ground search, which ended on Sunday. Squadron Leader Graham Cochran, the base adjutant at Wigram, said the team came home boggling at the terrain they had encountered.

Above L-R: Rear; Second Lieutenant Humphrey Clarence Acton-Adams, Second Lieutenant Douglas Edward Ames, Second Lieutenant Brian Kenneth Barstow, Second Lieutenant Alan Murry Beale, Second Lieutenant Geoffrey Malcolm John Brown, Second Lieutenant CT Cheeseman.
Centre; Second Lieutenant Brian Alston Cowper, Second Lieutenant Selwyn John Down, Lieutenant GL Duncan, Lieutenant RD Fallaize, Lieutenant William James Gordon Foote, Second Lieutenant rdon Finley Henderson.
Front; Second Lieutenant Brian Nicolls Hunter Laird, Second Lieutenant SGW Long, Lieutenant JA McInnes, Second Lieutenant JBC Nicholls, Lieutenant MG Rees. (Courtesy Air Museum of New Zealand)

“The terrain was horrendous, near vertical hills that took the men three hours to descend just one hill. Although they didn’t find the aircraft, they say the countryside is so rough, it could be there and they just didn’t see it.”

The search for the Corsair and its missing pilot was done as a bushcraft and field survival exercise by the physical education students team, drawn from all three branches of the Armed Forces.

An area between Murchison and Inangahua was scoured, with the terrain so rough that the searchers had to be winched down by Iroquois. The object of the hunt was an American-built Chance Vought F4U-1 Corsair, a gull-winged fighter aircraft that disappeared on November 11, 1944. It was flown by Pilot Officer Brian Barstow.

He became separated from accompanying aircraft during a crossing from Westport to Christchurch. In spite of intensive air searches at the time, and occasional hunts in recent years, no trace of the pilot or aeroplane has been found.

The Air Force was spurred into the recent search through an accumulation of reports from hunters and prospectors of sightings of a crashed blue aeroplane.

The elusive Corsair remains one of eight New Zealand-based RNZAFaircraft still posted on the 'missing' list. Seven of the aircraft disappeared during World War II and the eighth, a Mustang, vanished in 1955'.

Above P/O. Sheppard in NZ5522 at Westport on the 12th November 1955.

NZ5502: Shipped from USA on the 10th May 1944 aboard 'USS Northfield. Advertised for sale by WARB tender number 1704 and sold from Rukuhia to J. Larsen, Palmerston North on 02 March 1948.

NZ5522: Shipped from USA on 10 May 1944 aboard 'USS Northfield'. Advertised for sale by WARB tender number 1704 and sold from Rukuhia to J. Larsen, Palmerston North on 02nd March 1948.

NZ5521: Shipped from USA on 10th May 1944 aboard 'USS Northfield. F/O. Dennis Gordon Allwright Ritchie NZ/421533 was involved in a train accident whilst with 25 squadron. Aircraft written off books at Ardmore on the 06th December 1944. The pilot sadly dived of his injuries late on the 28th November 1944. Further details here,

Burial details:

P/O. Brian Kenneth Barstow. Canterbury Provincial Memorial. Born at Wanganui on the 18,july 1921. Educated at Wanganui Technical College. Previous to service worked as a clerk for Alliance Insurance, Aukland. Four years with 9th and 11th Heavy Regiments as a 2nd Lt. Posted to RNZAF Masterton for aircrew training on the 18th June 1943. With 3 Elementary Flying Training School on the 13th November 1943. No. 2 Service Flying Training School on the 14th January. Awarded his Wings on the 20th March 1944. 40 Operational Training Unit on the 30th July 1944 flying the P-40 . Joined 16 squadron on the 16th October 1944 flying the Corsair.

Son of Nelson Clapham (died 27th August 1960, age 73) and Nina Angel Barstow (née Hickey - died 28th September 1976, age 82), of 30 Weston Road, St. Albans,, Christchurch, New Zealand.

Researched and dedicated to the relatives of this crew with thanks to the extensive research by Errol Martyn and his publications: “For Your Tomorrow Vols. 1-3”, New Zealand Cenotaph, Weekly News of New Zealand,WW2Aircraft Air Museum of New Zealand, Museum of Transport and Technology, Auckland, Find Lost Aircraft NZ.

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