Bullock, David – Plucky Central Old Boy awarded a George Medal

David Bullock (1942-1980)

DAVID Edward Bullock was the son of serviceman Fred Bullock and his wife, who lived in Agnes Terrace (off East Street).

He went to both Spittlegate Boys and the Boys Central School.

Because he had lived in Singapore for some time, where his father had been posted, he was known at the Central as ‘Boo Loc the Chink’, which would now be considered politically incorrect.

Like his father, he made his career in the RAF, joining straight from school. His career came to an abrupt end when he died making a gallant bid to save an American pilot from the North Sea off the Norfolk coast.

He drowned during an attempt to rescue a US Air Force A-10 pilot who became entangled in his parachute after ejecting over the North Sea.

Married with two children, he was stationed at RAF Bentwaters , Master Air Load Master David Bullock, was a helicopter winchman with C Flight of 202 Squadron.

In November 1980 after two USAF A-10 Thunderbolt IIs of the 81st Tactical Fighter Wing RAF Bentwaters collided in mid-air. One A-10 crashed near the village of Itteringham in Norfolk. An off-duty air traffic controller was slightly injured by flying debris from the aircraft.

The pilot of the other A-10, Lt,Col William Olson, attempted to return to Bentwaters by flying around the Norfolk coastline to avoid over-flying built-up areas. He lost control and ejected, coming down in the sea off Winterton.

Col Olson was still in his parachute and was being dragged through the water a few miles from Winterton in a high winds.

David  Bullock went down to the pilot to free him from his parachute. During the operation, the winchman somehow became entangled in the parachute lines, and the weight of the two men and the waterlogged parachute snapped the 3,700 lb breaking strain cable.

M/ALM Bullock and Col.Olson were then dragged by the parachute, which was being blown along by the wind.

The sea was too rough to attempt alighting in the Sea King, which remained with the dragging parachute, homing in a USAF HH-53 from the 67th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron, RAF Woodbridge.

Both men were pronounced dead on arrival at Norwich.

David’s fatality is the only one in the 30 year history of search and rescue helicopter operations in the UK, and is believed to be the only occasion when a winch cable snapped.

He was awarded a posthumous George Medal.