Military | Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives

On approach to Ostend-Stene Airport, the pilot was forced to attempt an emergency landing for unknown reason. The airplane crash landed in a field, collided with a ditch and came to rest. Both occupants evacuated safely.

Crash of a Keystone B-6A near Fredericksburg: 5 killed

Date & Time: Apr 5, 1936 at 2100 LT

Type of aircraft:

Keystone LB-6

Operator:

Registration:

32-173

Flight Phase:

Flight

Flight Type:

Military

Survivors:

Site:

Mountains

Schedule:

Pottstown – Middletown

Location:

Fredericksburg

Pennsylvania

Country:

United States of America

Region:

North America

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

En route from Pottstown to Middletown, while cruising at night, the crew encountered poor weather conditions with heavy rain falls. In limited visibility, the airplane impacted the slope of a mountain located 11 km northwest of Fredericksburg. The aircraft was destroyed and all five crew members were killed.

Probable cause:

Controlled flight into terrain.

Crash of a Fairey IIIF off Gibraltar: 1 killed

Date & Time: Mar 5, 1936

Type of aircraft:

Fairey III

Operator:

Registration:

S1404

Flight Phase:

Takeoff (climb)

Flight Type:

Military

Survivors:

Yes

Site:

Lake, Sea, Ocean, River

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

After being catapulted from the 'HMS Furious', the single engine airplane crashed into the sea off Gibraltar. A crew member was killed and two others were rescued.

Crash of a Handley Page H.P.50 Heyford IIA off Le Havre: 3 killed

Date & Time: Feb 19, 1936 at 0330 LT

Type of aircraft:

Handley Page H.P.50 Heyford

Operator:

Registration:

K4034

Flight Phase:

Flight

Flight Type:

Military

Survivors:

Yes

Site:

Lake, Sea, Ocean, River

Schedule:

Boscombe Down - Boscombe Down

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

The crew departed RAF Boscombe Down on a night training exercice. While cruising over The Channel in marginal weather conditions, the crew reported he was low on fuel and that he was trying to find a suitable terrain for landing. In limited visibility due to fog, the captain eventually attempted to ditch the airplane when it crashed 200 metres off Sainte-Adresse, in th suburb of Le Havre. A crew member was rescued while three others were killed.
Crew:
Sgt Walter Job, †
AC1 Cyril Adolphus Tregannon Bickham, †
AC2 William Watkin, †
F/O Robert Humphrey Page.

Crash of a Handley Page H.P.50 Heyford IA near Midhurst: 3 killed

Date & Time: Feb 19, 1936

Type of aircraft:

Handley Page H.P.50 Heyford

Operator:

Registration:

K4024

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Survivors:

Site:

Schedule:

Boscombe Down - Boscombe Down

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

The airplane departed RAF Boscombe Down on an exercice with four crew members on board. En route, the airplane impacted the top of a hill and crashed in Broken Jill, near Midhurst. The pilot was seriously injured and three other occupants were killed.
Crew:
Sgt Charles Albert Deakin,
Sgt Edward Kenneth McDermott, †
LAC Cyril James Adams, †
LAC George John Westlake. †

Crash of a Keystone B-6A in Stonewall

Date & Time: Feb 12, 1936

Type of aircraft:

Keystone LB-6

Operator:

Registration:

32-152

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Survivors:

Site:

Location:

Country:

United States of America

Region:

North America

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

En route, the crew encountered an unexpected situation and was forced to abandon the aircraft that entered a dive and crashed in a wheat field located in Stonewall, in the suburb of Atlanta. The aircraft was destroyed and all five crew members were uninjured.

Crash of a Fairey IIIF in Atbara: 3 killed

Date & Time: Jan 27, 1936

Type of aircraft:

Fairey III

Operator:

Registration:

K1776

Flight Phase:

Flight

Flight Type:

Military

Survivors:

Site:

Plain, Valley

Schedule:

Port Sudan – Khartoum

MSN:

F.1475

YOM:

1931

Location:

Atbara

River Nile (ولاية نهر النيل)

Country:

Sudan

Region:

Africa

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

En route from Port Sudan to Khartoum, the pilot encountered marginal weather conditions with several cloud layers. In flight, he lost control of the airplane that entered a dive and crashed near Atbara, bursting into flames. All three occupants were killed.
Crew:
Sylvanus George Connolly,
Philip Vaughan Edwards,
Frank Campling.

Crash of a De Havilland DH.9 in Semplak

Date & Time: Jan 16, 1936 at 1030 LT

Type of aircraft:

De Havilland DH.9

Operator:

Flight Phase:

Takeoff (climb)

Flight Type:

Military

Survivors:

Yes

Site:

Airport (less than 10 km from airport)

Schedule:

Semplak – Bandung

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

Shortly after takeoff from Semplak, the crew encountered an unexpected situation and was forced to attempt an emergency landing. The aircraft crash landed and came to rest upside down. Both pilots were injured.

Crash of a Junkers JU.52/3m in Tres Esquinas: 13 killed

Date & Time: Jan 14, 1936

Type of aircraft:

Junkers JU.52

Operator:

Registration:

624

Flight Phase:

Landing (descent or approach)

Flight Type:

Military

Survivors:

Yes

Site:

Airport (less than 10 km from airport)

Schedule:

Puerto Boyacá – Tres Esquinas

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

While approaching Tres Esquinas Air Base, the crew encountered technical problems and lost control of the float plane that crashed. Six passengers were seriously injured while all 13 other occupants were killed.

Probable cause:

Unknown technical failure.

Crash of a Junkers W.34 in Bad Staffelstein: 4 killed

Date & Time: Jan 13, 1936

Type of aircraft:

Junkers W.34

Operator:

Flight Phase:

Flight Type:

Survivors:

Site:

Location:

Country:

Region:

Crew on board:

Crew fatalities:

Pax on board:

Pax fatalities:

Other fatalities:

Total fatalities:

Circumstances:

The aircraft was performing a flight within Germany with four passengers and one pilot on behalf of the 3rd Squadron based in Giebelstadt AFB, near Würzburg. While flying at low height, the aircraft impacted the slope of Mt Staffelberg (539 metres high) located south of Bad Staffelstein, Bavaria. The pilot and one passenger were killed while three passenger were seriously injured. In the evening, one of the survivor died from his injuries and another passenger passed away three days later. At the time of the accident, the visibility was poor due to foggy conditions.
Crew:
Cpt Wolf Freiherr von Gültlingen.
Passengers:
Lt Rudolf Scharnier,
2nd Lt Peter Zapf,
Lt Karl Hermann Kurt von Plüskow +1.