On 1 June 1943, the BOAC flight from Lisbon to Whitchurch was assigned to the Ibis and given flight number 777-A. It was originally scheduled to take off at 7:30 am but was delayed when Howard got off to pick up a package that he had left at customs; it departed at 7:35 GMT.
Whitchurch received a departure message and continued regular radio contact until 10:54.
The flight was roughly 200 miles (320 km) northwest of the coast of Spain when Whitchurch received a message from wireless operator van Brugge that they were being followed and fired upon at 46°30'N, 009°37'W. Shortly afterwards, the aircraft crashed and sank in the Bay of Biscay.

The following day, BOAC released a statement:
The British Overseas Airways Corporation regrets to announce that a civil aircraft on passage between Lisbon and the United Kingdom is overdue and presumed lost.
The last message received from the aircraft stated that it was being attacked by an enemy aircraft.
The aircraft carried 13 passengers and a crew of four.
Next-of-kin have been informed.
On 1 June 1943, the BOAC flight from Lisbon to Whitchurch was assigned to the Ibis and given flight number 777-A. It was originally scheduled to take off at 7:30 am but was delayed when Howard got off to pick up a package that he had left at customs; it departed at 7:35 GMT. Whitchurch received a departure message and continued regular radio contact until 10:54. The flight was roughly 200 miles (320 km) northwest of the coast of Spain when Whitchurch received a message from wireless operator van Brugge that they were being followed and fired upon at 46°30'N, 009°37'W. Shortly afterwards, the aircraft crashed and sank in the Bay of Biscay.
The following day, BOAC released a statement:
The British Overseas Airways Corporation regrets to announce that a civil aircraft on passage between Lisbon and the United Kingdom is overdue and presumed lost. The last message received from the aircraft stated that it was being attacked by an enemy aircraft. The aircraft carried 13 passengers and a crew of four. Next-of-kin have been informed.
BOAC Flight 777