PLANE HITS HOUSE

Grey River Argus, 23 September 1932, Page 5

PLANE HITS HOUSE

WELLINGTON SMASH Two Men Injured (Per Press Association). WELLINGTON, September 22. A Moth plane, bolonging to the Wellington Aero C'ub. when returning from the Devin Aero Club’s pageant, this morn ng. crashed into a house in Ballance Street, Johnsonville, about eight o’clock, and burst into flames. Th- corner of the house caught afire. The plane was occupied by A. L. De Tourettes and L. F. Taylor, both young men, and members of the Wellington Aero Club. De Tourettes, apart from shock and burns on th-' face suffered little injury, but Taylor was extensively burned almost all over the body. He lies in the Bowen Street Hospital, in a serious condition. De Tourettes, was able to be taken home. It would appear, from the story of one eye-witness, that engine trouble had developed, and that an attempt was be».ng made to land either on th® recreation ground or on the school playing ground nearby, and that the pilot was waving for the ground to be clear, but could not obtain a clear landing. Th e house into which the machine crashed is occupied by V. A. Mills. The fir® was suppressed b” the Johnsonv’lle Volunteer Brigade. None of the inmates was injured. The plane was completely destroyed by the blaze, and the engine was left embedded on the verandah of th® house. An eye-witness said that the machine came from a north-easterly direction, flying low, at a comparatively slow speed. It passed over his house, and then circled, coming over his house again in a steep left-hand bank. This time, the- right wing touched some tall cabbage trees in his garden. The machine continued, and was turning again, the pilot apparently as a last resort, endeavouring to land in the road. The right wing struck a power pole and cut the wires down this slewing the machine iound, and it made straight over Mills’s Although striking the power wires must have reta-ded its, speed somewhat, the impact with the house was severe, the machine crashing through the wall of an office on the verandah, and bursting through the wall of the house, throwing a heavy wardrobe in the room on to the bed. This room is the room of Mills, senior, who is nearly 90 yoars of age, but fortunately he was not in the room at the time. It appears that De Tourettes, prior to engine trouble developing was flying the machine from the back seat. When the trouble arose, Taylor, who is the more-experienced pilot, took over the controls in front. BOTH VICTIMS BANKERS. WELLINGTON, September 22. Both Taylor and De Tourettes are members of the staff of the Wellington branch of the Bank of New Zealand.