Donald Campbell arrived back at Coniston Water, scene of previous triumphs, in November 1966. Bluebird K7 had been re-engined with a Bristol-Siddeley Orpheus jet rated at 4500lbs thrust. His stated aim was to bump the record out of reach of the Americans, and push it beyond 300mph (480kph) The new attempt suffered many setbacks both mechanical, and weather related, and time by the end of 1966, Campbell existing 276mph record was still not broken. On the morning of January 4, 1967, he was a man under pressure, but the day dawned still, and conditions seemed perfect.

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 Donald Campbell fatal Bluebird Run 1967 WS record

Bluebird K7 was over a decade old, and an American called Lee Taylor was threatening the record with a new boat, Hustler. The patriotic Campbell desperately wanted a Briton to be the first to break 480 km/h (300 mph). His first run across the lake was untroubled and fast. K7 averaged 475.2 km/h (297.6 mph). A new record seemed in sight. Campbell applied K7's water brake to slow the craft down from her peak speed of 315mph as she left the measured Kilo. The wake caused by the water brake was very large from traveling at such high speeds, so Campbell would normally refuel and wait, before starting the mandatory return leg, for the lake to settle again. This time, perhaps fearing that conditions would deteriorate if he waited, Campbell immediately turned around at the end of the lake and began his return run, to try and beat his own wash. Bluebird came back on her return even faster. At around 512 km/h (320 mph), just as she entered the measured Kilo, Bluebird met its wake from the first run. The boat began to lose stability, and finally, 100m before the end of the Kilo, its nose lifted at a 45 degree angle. The boat took off, somersaulted and then plunged nose-first into the lake, breaking up as she cart-wheeled across the surface. Campbell was killed instantly. Prolonged searches over the next two weeks located the wreck, but it was not until May 2001 that Campbell's body was finally located and recovered. Campbell was laid to rest in the churchyard at Coniston on the 12 September 2001