Born during the September quarter 1910 in the Hull
R.D. - ref: 9d/305, the son of Joseph & Jane
Hannah Short, (nee Atkinson).

1911 Census - 2 Ada Avenue, Ena Street, Hull,
Yorkshire.   Son - aged: 9 months - born: Hull. 
Head of household - Joseph Short - Married - aged:
42 - occ: Blacksmith - born: Ulrome, Yorkshire.  
Also - Jane Hannah Short - Wife - aged: 34 - born:
Gristhorpe, Yorkshire.   Plus 3 elder siblings.

Married Vera Ryder during the December quarter
1934 in the Sculcoates R.D. - ref: 9d/318.

1939 National Registration.  St. Louis, Holderness
Road, Kingston upon Hull, Yorkshire.   Ambrose
Ryder - Married - born on the 6th May 1887 - occ:
Newsagent & Tobacconist.  Louisa Ryder - Married -
born on the 25th May 1890 - occ: Unpaid Domestic
Duties.  Ambrose Ryder - Single - occ: Newsagent &
Tobacconist.   Vera A. Short - Married - born on
the ???? 1909 [during the June quarter 1909] -
occ: Unpaid Domestic Duties.   Bernard Short
Single - born on the 1st September 1938.   At this
time, Bernard was already serving in the RAFVR, so
would not be listed anywhere in the 1939 records.

The Yorkshire Post & Leeds Intellegencer dated the
17th November 1943 - Divorce proceeding were heard
before Mr Justice Oliver yesterday.  Vera Annie
Short was granted a Decree Nisi against her
husband - Bernard Short, an officer with the Air
Transport Auxiliary, Manchester with a woman named
Murphy.

See also - the excellent website
www.afleetingpeace.org/the-ata/index/php

On the 2nd April 1943, the port float of a Walrus
he was piloting, hit the ground on landing at RAF
Kirkbride. 

AM118 - At the time of his death, he was flying a
Halifax MkII Bomber - No. JP182 with four Merlin
engines.  In bad weather conditions, at 12.30 hrs,
he crashed the a/c into Eel Crag, between Crummock
Water and Derwent Water, 4 miles south-west of
Braithwaite, Cumbria, while ferrying the a/c from
45MU (Kinloss) to 5MU (Kemble).   He had flown a
total of 1,914 hours, of which 89 were on
Halifaxes.    Eel Cragg is the second highest peak
in the Lake District.

From -
http://www.yorkshire-aircraft.co.uk/aircraft/lakes/jp182.html
 There are also photographs of segments of this
a/c that 

On 24th January 1944 Halifax JP182 aircraft took
off from Kinloss airfield in Scotland, on board
was an ATA pilot and an ATA flight engineer who
were to fly the aircraft down to Kemble in
Wiltshire just prior to it being flown to the
Middle Eastern/North African theatre of
operations. Whilst flying in poor visibility and
with high winds effecting much of the country the
two airmen became lost over northern England.
Because the ATA aircraft carried no navigators it
was probably common practice when lost to locate
the coastline to work out their position, in this
case the crew had been attempting to divert to
land at Kirkbride airfield near Carlisle so they
were probably attempting to fly west and locate
the west coast and then fly north-east to
Carlisle. The pilot would have known Kirkbride
airfield as he had made landings there before with
earlier ATA flights. The Halifax was not flying
high enough as it crossed the Lake District and at
around 12.30hrs the aircraft crashed into Scot
Crag, on Crag Hill/Eel Crag mountain to the west
of Keswick killing the two on board instantly. The
bodies of the two crew members were recovered at
the time but due to the nature of the crash
location and the weather the recovery of the
wreckage took several months to carry out and
during this operation a member of the RAF fell and
required hospital treatment. LAC J R Hopps
(624894) was admitted to the Mary Hewitson Cottage
Hospital in Keswick with serious injuries. The UK
National Archives hold much more information in
files AVIA 15/3619 and 3620.

Halifax JP182 was built to contract B.124357/40 by
The London Passenger Transport Board at Leavesden
as a B.II Series.1a and was awaiting collection on
20th December 1943. Before the end of 1943 it was
delivered to No.1 OAPU (Overseas Aircraft
Preparation Unit) at Kemble for preparation for
service overseas. As a result of the accident in
the Lake District Cat.E2/FA damage was recorded on
the paperwork and at the time of the incident it
was in the hands of 14 FPP based at Ringway. The
aircraft may well have crashed while it was on the
return leg of a test flight with the Kemble to
Kinloss part of the flight being successful.

Those killed - Pilot - F/Cpt Bernard Short ATA,
aged 33. of Hull, Yorkshire. Buried Ringway
Churchyard, Cheshire (Row 3, grave 4).   Flight
Engineer - Snr F/Eng Arthur Bird ATA, aged 29, of
Edenbridge, Kent. Buried Edenbridge Cemetery, Kent
(Grave 292A).

Bernard learned to fly at the Hull Aero Club in
1937, gaining a Royal Aero Club Aviator's
Certificate (Cert. No.15381) on 22nd September
1937, at that time he was working as a newsagent
(his in-law's business). He later took a job
working for North Eastern Airways Ltd. When the
War begun he briefly served in the RAF but left to
join the ATA and served in the ATA until his death
in the Lake District. While ferrying aircraft he
was involved in three mishaps prior to this
incident near Braithwaite; on 30th August 1941 he
was the pilot of Leopard Moth AV986 which was
force-landed on Rushup Edge in the Peak District
and was damaged when he attempted to take off, on
20th February 1943 he was the pilot of Walrus
W3070 which was damaged in a flying accident in
high winds and on 2nd April 1943 he was the pilot
of Walrus X9482 which crashed on landing at
Kirkbride, Carlisle in a strong cross-wind. He
left a young son - Bernard Short Jnr.

Death registered during the March quarter 1944 in
the Cockermouth R.D. - ref: 10b/687 - aged: 33.   
His widow - Mrs. D.A. Short resided at 1009
Holderness Road, Hull, Yorkshire.

He has a CWGC headstone on his grave in Ringway
(St. Mary's P.C.) Church which is now closed and
is being used as offices.  It does not have any
personal M.I. on it.