1962 Channel Airways Dakota accident
.jpg) A similar Douglas C-47 | |
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | 6 May 1962 |
| Summary | Controlled flight into terrain |
| Site | St Boniface Down, Isle of Wight, United Kingdom 50°36′10″N 1°11′52″W / 50.6027°N 1.1977°W |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Douglas C-47A Dakota |
| Operator | East Anglian Flying Services trading as Channel Airways |
| Registration | G-AGZB |
| Flight origin | Jersey Airport, Jersey, Channel Islands |
| Destination | Portsmouth Airport, Portsmouth, England |
| Passengers | 15 |
| Crew | 3 |
| Fatalities | 12 |
| Survivors | 6 |
The 1962 Channel Airways Dakota accident occurred on 6 May 1962 when a Channel Airways [N 1] Douglas C-47A Dakota, registered G-AGZB and operating a scheduled passenger flight from Jersey to Portsmouth, collided with a cloud-covered hill at St Boniface Down, near Ventnor on the Isle of Wight. The aircraft had previously been owned by British European Airways, and was named "Robert Smith-Barry". The aircraft was destroyed, and twelve of the eighteen occupants were killed (all three crew members and nine out of 15 passengers, including three infants).[1][2][3]
Accident
[edit]The Dakota was on a scheduled flight from Jersey to Southend with a stop at Portsmouth. There were 15 passengers aboard.[1][4] With low cloud and drizzle in the Portsmouth/Isle of Wight area, the aircraft notified the controller that they were descending from 3,000 to 1,000 feet.[1][4] The aircraft was seen flying low over Ventnor just before it crashed, fifty feet below the summit of St Boniface Down and close to a disused Royal Air Force radar site.[1][2] The aircraft bounced and smashed through a ten-foot high perimeter fence of the radar site and burst into flames. Both pilots and eight of the passengers were killed instantly.[2]
The first man on the scene, a farm worker, helped two badly burned girls from the wreckage. After leading two other men to safety, he ran up the road to find help. There he found a group of seven amateur radio operators broadcasting as G3GWB/p [5] who were taking part in a competition.[2] The radiomen alerted another amateur radio operator in Southampton (G3NIM in Netley), who contacted the emergency services.[2] The seven injured were taken to local hospitals at Ryde and Newport; two of them, a stewardess and a passenger, subsequently died.[2]
Aftermath
[edit]A coroner's inquest was opened and then adjourned for two months on the Isle of Wight on 8 May.[6] The Channel Airways chief pilot said it was the company's first fatal accident in 17 years of operation.[6] The coroner paid tribute to those who took part in the rescue operation, and in particular Edward Price, the farmworker who was first on the scene.[6]
Probable cause
[edit]The probable cause of the accident was flying below a safe altitude in cloudy, rainy weather.[1]
References
[edit]- Notes
- ^ The operator was East Anglian Flying Services who operated under the name Channel Airways
- Citations
- ^ a b c d e Civil Aviation Authority 1974, p. 11/62
- ^ a b c d e f "Ten Killed in Holiday Air Crash – 3 Babies Among The Dead – Dakota Hits Hill in Fog, Seven Injured". News. The Times. No. 55384. London. 7 May 1962. col A, p. 10.
- ^ Accident description at the Aviation Safety Network
- ^ a b "Channel Airways Tragedy". Flight International: 773. 17 May 1962.
- ^ Isle of Wright Dakota Crash. The Shortwave Magazine, June 1962, p.188f
- ^ a b c "Inquest Opened on Air Crash Victims". News. The Times. No. 55386. London. 9 May 1962. col C, p. 15.
- Bibliography
- World Accident Summary. Civil Aviation Authority (United Kingdom). 1974. ISBN 0-903083-44-2.
- Aviation accidents and incidents in 1962
- Aviation accidents and incidents in England
- Accidents and incidents involving the Douglas C-47 Skytrain
- Airliner accidents and incidents involving controlled flight into terrain
- 1962 in England
- 1962 disasters in the United Kingdom
- May 1962 events in the United Kingdom