Staffordshire

The five occupants left Guernsey on 24 May and flew direct to Vannes in Normandy. The pilot routinely cruised at power settings of 2,350 RPM and 32 inches Manifold Pressure giving a speed of 140 KIAS. The flight to Vannes would have taken some 44 minutes in still air and records recovered from the aircraft indicated that it lasted 50 minutes. The aircraft was parked at Vannes for a few days on level ground. No fuel was uplifted before leaving Vannes and the aircraft departed on 31 May to fly to Meaux on the eastern outskirts of Paris. The records indicate that this 254 nm flight lasted 2 hours 5 minutes. The aircraft was parked on level ground at Meaux for a few days. On the morning of 3 June, the day of the accident, the owner taxied the aircraft to the aero club's fuel pumps at Meaux to have the fuel tanks replenished. She believes she may have dipped the tanks before refuelling began but she could not remember the resultant quantities. Whilst the aircraft was being refuelled, the pilot left its vicinity and went into the club premises to file her flight plan, check the weather and pay the fuel and airport charges. The fuel receipt was completed for 157 litres of 100LL AVGAS When the refuelling operator had finished filling the left wing tank he moved towards the right wing but received instructions from a member of the pilot's family that there was no need to refuel the right wing tank. A different member of the family stated, soon after the accident, that this was because the right fuel tank gauge was indicating 2/3 full. Shortly afterwards the pilot returned to the aircraft. She did not dip the tanks after refuelling. On leaving Meaux the pilot recalled that the right tank gauge indicated "almost full" whilst the left tank gauge indicated "a bit less". Her intentions were to fly from Meaux to the airstrip near Liverpool where three persons would disembark and she would then return to Henstridge. There were no refuelling facilities at the Liverpool landing strip and she planned to complete both legs without refuelling. She did so on the basis that the aircraft's endurance on full tanks was about 6 hours and she planned to be airborne for less than this. (The still air flight time was later calculated to be 41/4 hours and the prevailing winds were westerly). The aircraft departed Meaux at 1020 hrs and was flown uneventfully and in VMC conditions towards Liverpool via Compiegne, Abbeville, Lydd, Clacton and Cambridge. The autopilot was disengaged throughout the flight and the pilot could not recall using abnormal amounts of rudder or roll control (the aircraft had no aileron trim). Specifically, she was not aware of any marked imbalance in roll or any abnormal fuel gauge readings. At 1246 hrs when the aircraft was at 3,500 feet altitude and south of Leicester the pilot contacted East Midlands Approach and requested a Flight Information Service en-route to the Lichfield NDB. At 1312 hrs she transmitted a Mayday message on the East Midlands frequency stating that she had "lost" the right engine. The controller responded with information that the nearest airfield was Tatenhill in her six o'clock at about 10 miles range. The pilot turned to the right and took-up a south-westerly track towards Tatenhill. About one minute later, when asked to confirm her altitude, the pilot reported "I HAVE NO ENGINES NOW" followed by "TO DO A FORCED LANDING PAPA VICTOR, OH NO ITS GOING AGAIN". The controller continued providing vectors to Tatenhill whilst his assistant briefed Tatenhill's radio operator and West Drayton's Distress and Diversion cell on the developing situation. At 1315:40 hrs, when the aircraft was 10 miles northwest of Tatenhill at 2,800 feet altitude, the pilot reported "NO ENGINES ... W'ELL HAVE TO FIND A FIELD". The last recorded RTF message from the pilot at 1316:50 hrs was "I HAVE A HI... HILL ERM A FIELD ON A". The pilot was heavily sedated in hospital for some time after the accident and she could remember little of the final stages of the glide approach. The aircraft passed low beside a farmhouse and crash-landed in a field of soft earth with a significant up-slope in the landing direction.

On approach, the single engine aircraft collided with trees and crash landed. There were no casualties but the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.

The pilot carried out extensive pre-flight checks of G-KINK which had been little used during the preceding six months. During these checks he established visually that the left main (tip) fuel tank was 30% full and the right main fuel tank was 40% full(the tanks can each hold 51 US gallons which equates to approximately 306 lb per side). Both wing (auxiliary) tanks were full but the locker tanks were empty. At 1539 hrs the aircraft departed Halfpenny Green in CAVOK weather conditions for a brief local flight to the west of the airfield. After climbing to an altitude of 2,500 feet and establishing cruise power conditions, the pilot changed the fuel valve selectors from main to auxiliary tanks on both engines. A few minutes later,he set course for a return to Halfpenny Green and changed the fuel selectors back to main tanks on both engines. At this stage the left tank indicated 50 lb remaining and the right tank indicated 70 lb remaining but the pilot had established during his pre-flight checks that these tank gauges were over-reading. About 13 nm from the airport the pilot lowered one stage of flapand obtained 'clearance' from Halfpenny Green Information foran overhead join for landing on Runway 16 from a left-hand circuit. The aircraft overflew the airport and after reducing engine power to 20 inches manifold pressure and 2,200 RPM, the pilot manoeuvred to the west of Runway 16 where he descended on the 'dead side' in preparation for the downwind leg. In his report to the AAIB, the pilot stated that on throttling back, both engines faltered whereupon he checked that all thethrottle, pitch and mixture levers were fully forward, the fuel pumps were switched on and that main tanks were selected on both engines. He then declared an emergency on the AFIS frequency and requested an immediate left orbit with the intention of landing on Runway 16. Initially power was restored on both engines and the pilot lowered the landing gear in preparation for a shortfield landing on Runway 16. However, at approximately 300 ft agl, whilst still travelling downwind, the left engine stopped. There was no time to feather the propeller but the pilot applied right rudder and, with the aircraft descending rapidly, he decided to force-land straight ahead into a field of standing crop to the north west of the airfield. Unfortunately, whilst manoeuvring to avoid farm buildings, the aircraft's left wing tip struck electricity power lines. During the subsequent crash landing the aircraft slid about 50 yards and latterly it 'cartwheeled' in the standing crop and came to rest upside down. There was no fire and all three occupants remained suspended by their seat harnesses. The pilot noticed a strong smell of fuel which was dripping from the region of the fuel valve selectors. He switched off the battery master and engine magneto switches; he also attempted to select both fuel valves to the OFF position but initially he was unsuccessful. After some difficulty, probably due to the weight of the now inverted boarding steps, the pilot succeeded in opening the main cabin door and together with his passengers, he vacated the aircraft and moved to a safe distance to await the arrival of the emergency services. However, before long, when he was convinced there was no longer any danger of fire, he returned to the aircraft to recover documents and valuables. At the same time he confirmed that the electrical switches were off and he succeeded in turning the left engine fuel valve selector to OFF. However, the right fuel valve selector could not be moved to the OFF position.

While on a cargo from Edinburgh to Coventry, cruising at FL150, the crew encountered severe icing conditions when engines n°2 and 3 failed. The crew was cleared to initiate an emergency descent to FL070 and FL050 and elected to divert to Birmingham Airport. Shortly later, he was able to restart the engine n°2 when the engine n°4 failed as well. The aircraft entered an uncontrolled descent and crashed in a wooded area located in Uttoxeter, about 45 km north of Birmingham Airport. The copilot was seriously injured and the captain was killed.

The Varsity aircraft was a twin engined training aircraft used by the Royal Air Force until 1974 when it was sold into private ownership. It was currently owned and operated by an aircraft preservation group who maintained the aircraft to its service specification. For this reason it carried the military designation "WJ897" on the fuselage and wings although it was registered as G-BDFT. The aircraft had been granted a Permit to Fly and was restricted to display and demonstration flying and the practising for such displays. Thirteen members of the society had boarded the aircraft earlier that morning at RAF Syerston in Nottinghamshire, where the aircraft was hangared, for the short flight to East Midlands Airport (EMA). This flight was uneventful and, after landing, the aircraft was refuelled with 436 imperial gallons of aviation gasoline (Avgas 100 LL) increasing the total fuel on board to 510 imp gals. It was intended to fly to Liverpool Airport (LPL) to take part in an air display that afternoon. It was arranged that aerial photographs of the Varsity would be taken during the flight to Liverpool using a Cessna 180. This aircraft was to rendezvous with the Varsity at 3000 feet amsl in the area of Blithfield Reservoir some 20 miles to the west of East Midlands Airport. The Varsity engines were normally started using a ground electrical supply. On this occasion, the left engine was reluctant to start and after it initially fired, it faltered and stopped, emitting smoke from the exhaust. For fear of exhausting the batteries with repeated attempts to start, the right engine was started first. The left engine was then motored over before another start attempt was made, this time successfully. The passengers on the Varsity were told that the left engine had been over primed on the first attempt to start. The Varsity took off at 09:32 and the approach controller at East Midlands Airport provided bearing and range information to the Varsity pilot to help him locate the Cessna 180 and, at 09:47 hrs, both aircraft changed to a discrete radio frequency. The Varsity was then flown in formation on the right hand side of the Cessna in a series of wide orbits of the Blithfield Reservoir. During this time, the left engine of the Varsity was seen to emit occasional puffs of smoke accompanied by loud bangs. When the photographer requested that the Varsity climb slightly above the Cessna and lower its undercarriage, the Varsity pilot reported that he was having trouble with the right engine. The Cessna pilot replied that it looked to him as if the problem was in fact with the left engine, as he could see puffs of smoke as if the engine were running too rich. When the Varsity pilot replied that it might be engine icing, the Cessna pilot noted that his intake temperature was indicating in the range where there was no risk of intake icing on his engine. The undercarriage of the Varsity was lowered briefly before being retracted again with the pilot's comment that he "could not accept the drag and might have to abort the photography". Towards the end of the photographic flying, the right engine started to backfire as well. At 10:05, the Varsity pilot called East Midlands Airport on the approach frequency requesting a direct return to the airport because he had some engine problems and might have to declare an emergency. In reply the approach controller passed the Varsity a course to steer to East Midlands and asked whether the Varsity could maintain height. The pilot answered that "at the present we are able to but it's with some difficulty". The Varsity steadily losing height and, at 10:07, the pilot informed the controller that the left engine of the Varsity had stopped. Thirty seconds later the Varsity co-pilot radioed "we're going to have to put it down in the nearest field, we're down to 400 feet and losing power on both engines so we are going into the...". The undercarriage of the Varsity was lowered and, at a very low height, the left wing was then seen to drop and the aircraft rolled over, the nose dropped and it crashed inverted. Just before impact the left mainplane severed 11,000 volt electricity supply wires. As the aircraft broke-up on impact, the rear part of the fuselage together with the empennage fell into a drainage ditch some 10 feet deep. The three survivors were seated in rearward facing seats in this part of the fuselage. Two were able to escape from the fuselage but the third was hampered by a broken leg and received severe burns when a wire fence prevented him from leaving the accident area.

Following a successfully skydiving mission in the region of Halfpenny Green Airport, the crew was returning to his base when the airplane crashed on landing for unknown reason. All three occupants survived while the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.

En route from Blackpool, the pilot informed ATC about smoke in the cockpit and elected to divert to the nearest airport. As the situation on board became critical, he decided to attempt an emergency landing in a field located in Eccleshall. The aircraft crash landed and came to rest with severe damages to its undercarriage and wings. All seven occupants evacuated safely.

The crew was performing a local training sortie at RAF Lichfield. After completing several maneuvers successfully, the crew started the approach with the right engine inoperative. On final, the aircraft banked right, causing the right wing to hit the ground. Out of control, the airplane stalled and crashed in a field located short of runway threshold. All three crew members were injured and the aircraft was written off.

The crew was completing a local training sortie at RAF Lichfield. During the approach completed in IMC conditions, the pilot-in-command deactivated the automatic pilot system and decided to continue manually under VFR rules. In heavy rain falls, he did not realize that the aircraft was losing height when it crashed in a field short of runway threshold. Two crew members were injured while the third occupant was killed.

Hit a building with one of its wings while taxiing at RAF Lichfield. There were no casualties but the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.