GEOFF Axe’s letter about an air crash at Iffley, Oxford, 60 years ago brought a large response from readers.

Many recalled running from Rose Hill, Iffley and Donnington Schools to the scene during their lunch hour after the twin-engined RAF Valetta – affectionately known as the Pig – came down in a field on February 26, 1952.

And for one reader, there was a feeling of pride – her father received a commendation from the RAF for helping to rescue the crew.

Mr Axe, of Upper Road, Kennington, sparked our interest when he wrote (Memory Lane, October 22): “All the kids rushed down and found the plane had crashed near the old post office.”

Aviation enthusiast John Wilson, of York Road, Headington, pinpointed the date from his records, revealing that the plane, from RAF Abingdon, was flying on just one engine.

He writes: “The port engine was ‘feathered’. A short time later, the starboard engine began to fail due, it appeared, to a mag-neto problem.

“The pilot tried to ‘unfeather’ the port engine, but without success so he decided to crash land at the nearest open space.

“Unfortunately, he hit an oak tree and the aircraft was a write-off. The three crew members were not too badly hurt.”

Two were taken to the Radcliffe Infirmary, Oxford, but the third was able to scramble to safety, with help from villagers, including Thomas Bartlett.

Mr Bartlett’s daughter, Brenda Sellwood, of Pipkin Way, Oxford, tells me: “My parents lived in the Old Bakery house next to the Prince of Wales pub. I was just a baby.

“My father was one of the first people on the scene and helped pull the men out of the burning plane.

“He received a letter of commendation from the RAF for his bravery. I will always be very proud of him for what he did.”

Mr Bartlett was in his garden when he heard the aircraft approaching and ran indoors to see that his wife and baby daughter were safe. He found them on the floor, “taking cover”.

He told the Oxford Mail at the time: “The plane just missed the TV aerial on a house in Abberbury Road, then suddenly changed course as if the pilot had seen the open space and decided to make for it.

“He then hit a tree in Mrs Phelps’s garden, then the corner of Mr and Mrs Lang’s house and crashed.”

Two or three other men rushed with Mr Bartlett to the scene to help rescue the crew.

The pilot was Wing Commander M Kane and co-pilot Flight Lieutenant J Brenmer. The third crew member was not named.