Zone
New York

Crash of a Stinson SM-1 Detroiter in the Atlantic Ocean

Date & Time: Oct 12, 1927
Type of aircraft:
Stinson SM-1 Detroiter
Operator:
Ruth Elder
Registration:
NX1384
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Private
Survivors:
Yes
Site:
Lake, Sea, Ocean, River
Schedule:
New York - Paris
MSN:
M207
YOM:
1927
Location:
Atlantic Ocean
All World
Country:
World
Region:
World
Crew on board:
1
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
1
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
0
Circumstances:
While performing a nonstop transatlantic flight from New York (Roosevelt Field) to Paris, the aircraft named 'American Girl' was cruising 650 km west from the Azores Islands when the engine failed due to an oil leak. The crew sent a mayday message, reporting his position. The pilot ditched the airplane and both occupants were later rescued by the crew of the dutch tanker named 'Barendrecht'. The aircraft sank and was lost.
Crew:
George Halderman, pilot.
Passenger:
Mrs. Ruth Elder, aviator, actress and owner of the aircraft.
Probable cause:
Engine failure due to oil leak.

Crash of a Levasseur PL.8 in the Atlantic Ocean: 2 killed

Date & Time: May 9, 1927
Type of aircraft:
Levasseur PL.8
Operator:
Charles Nungesser
Registration:
L'Oiseau Blanc
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Private
Survivors:
No
Site:
Lake, Sea, Ocean, River
Schedule:
Paris - New York
MSN:
PL.8-01
YOM:
1927
Location:
Atlantic Ocean
All World
Country:
World
Region:
World
Crew on board:
2
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
2
Circumstances:
Named L'Oiseau Blanc, the aircraft took off at 0517LT on 8 May 1927 from Paris-Le Bourget Airport, heading for New York with two French aviators on board: Charles Nungesser and François Coli. They tried to make the first transatlantic non stop flight from Paris to New York counting for the Orteig Prize. The biplane weighed 5,000 kg (11,000 lb) on takeoff, extremely heavy for a single-engined aircraft. The intended flight path was a great circle route, which would have taken them across the English Channel, over the southwestern part of England and Ireland, across the Atlantic to Newfoundland, then south over Nova Scotia, to Boston, and finally to a water landing in New York. L'Oiseau Blanc had been carrying a sizable load of fuel, 4,000 liters (1,056.7 US gal), which would have given them approximately 42 hours of flight time. Crowds of people gathered in New York to witness the historic arrival, with tens of thousands of people crowding Battery Park in Manhattan to have a good view of the Statue of Liberty, where the aircraft was scheduled to touch down. After their estimated time of arrival had passed, with no word as to the aircraft's fate, it was realized that the aircraft had been lost. Rumors circulated that L'Oiseau Blanc had been sighted along its route, in Newfoundland, or over Long Island, and despite the launch of an international search, further search efforts were eventually abandoned on 09JUN1927. As of 2008, the landing gear is the only confirmed part of the L'Oiseau Blanc remaining, and is on display at the Musée de l'Air et de l'Espace (French Air and Space Museum), in Le Bourget Airport in Paris, the location from which L'Oiseau Blanc took off. This landing gear was dropped by the crew shortly after takeoff from Le Bourget.

Crash of a De Havilland DH.4B in New York

Date & Time: Aug 23, 1922
Type of aircraft:
De Havilland DH.4
Operator:
Registration:
AS-64544
Flight Phase:
Landing (descent or approach)
Flight Type:
Military
Site:
Airport (less than 10 km from airport)
Location:
New York
New York
Country:
United States of America
Region:
North America
Crew on board:
0
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
0
Circumstances:
Crashed on landing in New York, exact airport unknown.

Crash of a De Havilland DH.4B in New York

Date & Time: Mar 17, 1922
Type of aircraft:
De Havilland DH.4
Operator:
Registration:
AS-63989
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Military
Site:
Lake, Sea, Ocean, River
Location:
New York
New York
Country:
United States of America
Region:
North America
Crew on board:
0
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
0
Circumstances:
Crashed in the New York harbor following an engine failure. Crew fate unknown.
Probable cause:
Engine failure.

Crash of a De Havilland DH.4 in Long Valley: 1 killed

Date & Time: Oct 30, 1919
Type of aircraft:
De Havilland DH.4
Operator:
Registration:
77
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Postal (mail)
Survivors:
No
Site:
Plain, Valley
Schedule:
College Park – Belmont Park
MSN:
77
Location:
Long Valley
New Jersey
Country:
United States of America
Region:
North America
Crew on board:
1
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
1
Circumstances:
The pilot was completing a mail flight from College Park to Belmont Park, New York. While overflying New Jersey, he encountered poor weather conditions and reduced his altitude to maintain a visual contact with the ground. Eventually, he decided to make an emergency landing in Long Valley, west of Newark, when the aircraft impacted ground and crashed in a field. The pilot J. P. Charlton was killed.

Crash of a Curtiss R-4LM in Catonsville: 1 killed

Date & Time: Oct 14, 1919
Type of aircraft:
Curtiss R-4LM
Operator:
Registration:
32
Flight Phase:
Flight
Flight Type:
Postal (mail)
Survivors:
No
Site:
Plain, Valley
Schedule:
Washington DC – New York
Location:
Catonsville
Maryland
Country:
United States of America
Region:
North America
Crew on board:
1
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
1
Circumstances:
En route, the pilot encountered poor visibility due to foggy conditions. Too low, the aircraft hit tree tops and crashed in a wooded area located in Catonsville, about 10 km north of the Baltimore Airport. The pilot Lyman W. Doty was killed.
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