Crash of a Potez 25 in Sorbier: 2 killed
Date & Time:
Oct 5, 1929 at 1135 LT
Operator:
Registration:
47
Survivors:
No
Schedule:
Bucharest – Belgrade – Venice – Lyon – Tours
MSN:
47
YOM:
1925
Crew on board:
2
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
2
Circumstances:
In the first Potez 25 registered 29 took place François Tulasne and his copilot Favier. In the second Potez 25 registered 47 took place Sergeant Robert Josserand and Sergeant in Chief Georges Vergnaud. With two other Potez 25, they were returning to their base in Tours-Parçay-Meslay after taking part to the funeral of the Romanian Colonel Stefan Protopopescu in Bucharest. All four aircraft made intermediate stops in Belgrade and Venice but both other crews encountered technical problems in Venice and Lyon and both aircraft were grounded. En route from Lyon to Tours, while cruising some two km south of Sorbier, Allier, the crews encountered poor weather conditions with heavy rain falls and low clouds. Due to poor visibility, the crew of the first aircraft decided to return and made a 180 turn when the collision occurred. From a height of 100 metres, both aircraft collided and dove into the ground, killing all four occupants.
