Dunbeath Mk.III Memorial

On the afternoon of 25 August 1942, Sunderland W4026 took off from the seaplane base at RAF Invergordon on the Cromarty Firth at 13:05, bound for Reykjavik, Iceland. On board was HRH Prince George, Duke of Kent -- the fourth son of King George V, younger brother of the reigning King George VI, and an Air Commodore on active RAF duty -- along with his private secretary and batman, and the Sunderland's crew led by the 228 Squadron CO, Wing Commander Moseley. Fog persisted and the aircraft, flying on instruments, veered off its planned flight path. Just 37 minutes after take-off, at 13:42, the Sunderland flew into Eagle's Rock (Creag na h-Iolaire), a headland near Dunbeath in Caithness. Fourteen of the fifteen on board were killed. The sole survivor was Flt Sgt Andrew Jack, the rear gunner, who was thrown clear. Confused, disorientated, and suffering from burns to his face and body, Jack wandered aimlessly in the mist before being discovered the following day by the Sutherland family at their remote croft at Rinsary. The Duke of Kent became the first member of the Royal Family killed on active service since 1453. A Royal Air Force Board of Inquiry attributed the crash to navigational error.