LOCKHEED CRASHES.

Horowhenua Chronicle, 11 May 1938, Page 7

LOCKHEED CRASHES.

; TWO PILOTS INCINERATED. \ ' ' ' ; No Passengers Aboard (By Telegrapn.—iPress Association.) AUCKLAND, Last Night. Tn tragic circumstances to-day a senior pilot of Union Airways, Limited, Commander Duthie, and his co-pilot, Second Officer W. J. Peel, were burned to death when the Lockheed Electra monoplane Kotare crashed and burst into flames a few minutes after taking off on her return flight from Mangere to Wellington. There were no passengers. Union Airways officials who watched the crash with horrified eyes were powerless to help the airmen, who were incinerated in the blazing machine within a few seconds of the crash. Eye-witnesses state that the monoplane took off on the return flight half an hour after arriving from Wellington. The Kotare had been subjected to the usual survey, conditions were clear and there was no hint of impending tragedy. The monoplane did not &ain altitude, and the officials at the - aerodrome watched her from the moment she took off till the crash. ' *

The first announcement concerning the crash was made by Mr. C. B. V. Wheeler, manager of the Union Steam Ship Company at Auckland, who reported'that the Lockheed Electra monoplane Kotare, ZK-AFC, took off from Mangere for 'Wellington at the usual .hour with two pilots and a quantity of mail. There were no passengers. A few minutes after taking off the monoplane was seen to be forced down a -mile , west of-the aerodrome. As the monoplane dropped it burst into flames. ‘ Union Company representatives who aaw the ’plane down were on tlie scene by motor-car "and on foot within four minutes. When they arrived at the .scene of the crash, both pilots were dead.

Commander Duthie was in the Palmerston North-Dunedin service before ithe service was extended to Auckland almost a yoar ago. He was one of the •company’s senior pilots and had had long flying experience. Second-officer Peel had been with the company about 38 months. The service will not be interrupted, Mr. Wheeler said, because there is a spare ’plane which can be brought into use immediately. The Lockheed had just come up from Wellington on the morning run and Commander Keith Brownjohn, who piloted it, stated that to his knowledge the engine was all right. He said he could tell nothing of the tragedy, though he had seen the 'plane take off With' the usual cheery salutations to those about.

Commander Duthie and Second-officer Peel had taken their , seats at the controls, then the big 12-passenger lowwing monoplane turned' into the 'vyind, sped down the runway and lifted over the creek below and . turned her head north. As the 'plane left the. ground watcjiers below had kept their eyes on her and saw her rise to take about the 'usual altitude when taking off and circle slowly, heading towards the south. ’ She did not gain altitude, and the ground staff and Union Airways officers gathered about the hangar suddenly jaw her plunge toward the ground. Then they saw her crash and a sudden 7 burst of flame and smoke rose. For a moment they ail stood still. Onlookers rushed immediately to two oars and, carrying emergency tire equipment with them, made up the road to : the scene of the tragedy. It was a terrible sight that presented itself to them. Across the swampy creek, amongst a clump of trees, some of which Md been broken by the crash, lay the blazing structure of the 'plane, its ■wings crumpled back, its tail broken off and its nose bent and embedded in the muddy ground. The cabin was a mass of flame and, though the Airways .staff men tried to get close enough to use fire extinguishers, it was impossible, owing to the heat of the flames. They •could see that it was impossible to do anything for the pilots trapped inside. They would by that time have been already beyond help. Making heroic efforts, however, Mr. A. N. Patterson, the engineer, and other helpers gradually attacked the flames with extinguishers and,-as the fire burnt out or was conquered, the charred bodies of two men were revealed. From their position in the machine it was impossible to. say whether or not they not they had been killed instantaneously by the.shock of the crash or whether they had been burned as they attempted to make their way to the rear door. The Mtter theory seined‘highly improbable |n the circumstances. In the mpastime,, ambulances had been called from the city, and three machines were sent out. "• V ’ -

“I stood on a bank about 20ft, from the blazing ’plane/’ said a driver of a St. John Ambulance who went out to attend the accident,” and I could see the bodies of the pilots. It was a ghastly scene/’ Since the inaugural trip the service (has been regularly maintained, with the transport- of passengers and mails. [Regular time-tables have been kept, and there had not been any accidents. At 1 ; o’clock the machine was still burning/and as yet they had been unable to take the remains of the two men from it. It Was a grim scene in the centre of a sunlit paddock, where from the roadway only the smoke rising above the trees told the story. Ambulances were lined up ready but useless, and across the stream and in among the trees were groups of Maoris and local residents looking on where two men had lost their lives, where an airliner had

crashed and burned and where now a group of stern-faced men were working busily with fire extinguishers or stood silent.

Among them was Commander Brownjohu, who had brought the Kotare north that morning. With his hands on the controls it had lifted above Eongotai, carrying six passengers, and had droned a fast, even course along the line of the North Island to its landing at Mangere at 11.45 after a final circle over the city of Auckland. "Now it was a crumpled, pitiful mass of broken plates and steel framework. At the scene there was little that could be done. When the flames had died sufficiently the bodies of the two nien were removed as carefully as possible and were taken away to the morgue. The scene of the crash and the remains of the plane were then given over to the police. An inquiry will be held later. Aside from the immediate tragedy the crash of the Kotare had other significance. It marred the hitherto clean record of New Zealand’s major air line. It was the first accident that had befallen one of the air-liners employed by Union Airways on the main trunk services. Fortunate only in the circumstances was the fact that on this flight there were no passengers. The passengers who arrived by the plane this morning were: Mrs. D. McMillan, from Wellington; Mr. E. 0. Trie key, from Palmerston North; and Mr. S. J. Gudsell, Mrs. E. McLean, Mr. H. A. Purser and Miss P. Purser, from New Plymouth. All the mail, comprising 180 letters, was destroyed; PILOT OFFICER DUTHIE PROMISING LIFE CUT SHORT. With the tragic death in the air disaster at Auckland yesterday of PilotOfficer C. M. T)uthie, there has been removed a personality who was widely known and well-liked in the Feilding district, in addition to Manawatu and Wellington. The second son of Mr. and Mrs. A. Duthie, of Kimbolton road, Feilding, he was but 30 years of age and was married only last November. His widow is: at present visiting Feilding, | spending a holiday with his parents, j Mr. Duthie was on the Palmerston • North-Dunedin service before the serj vice was extended to Auckland about * a year ago. He was one of the comf pany’s senior pilots and had long flying experience. Pilot Officer Duthie was born in Wanganui and received his secondary education at Scots College, Wellington, and at the Feilding Agricultural High School. Following his school days he joined the office staff of Messrs. John Duthie and Company, Wellington, and while there undertook -flying at the Eongotai aerodrome. He resigned from the employ of the company and joined the Manawatu Aero Club as pilot-instructor, leaving there to enter the pilot staff of Union Airways on the company’s inception. He became a senior pilot when me English machines were operating on the Dunedin-Palmerston North route, and at the time of his passing was a senior pilot in charge of one of the American Lockheed machines. SECOND OFFICER W. J. PEEL HAWKE’S BAY PILOT. HASTINGS, Last Night. Mr. W. J. (John) Peel, one of the pilots killed in the crash near Auckland this afternoon, was born in Napier in 1913, and lived there almost all his life until his appointment as a pilot to Union Airways in June, 1937. He was a keen territorial officer before his departure, and had attained the rank of lieutenant in the Hawke’s Bay Regiment; He was educated at the Napier Boys’ High School, and distinguished himself I in the cadet battalion there, being I appointed successively corporal and company sergeant-major in 1929. Ho entered the Hawke’s Bay Regiment, and in 1931, his first year, was promoted to corporal. He passed the examination for his commission, and was appointed second-lieutenant in 1934 and lieutenant in 1936. His brother, Captain J. S. Peel, at present in the Napier Public Hospital, is still an officer in

the regiment, and his father also resides in Napier. Mr. Peel learned to fly at the Hawke’s Bay and East Coast Aero Club Under the then instructor, who is now Commander A, G. Gerrand, of Union Airways. He was widely known throughout Hawke’s Bay. OFFICIALS ORDERED TO SCENE WELLINGTON, Last Night. The steps taken to investigate the acciednt to the Union Airways ’plane at Auckland were outlined by the Minister in Charge of Aviation, Hon. F. Jones, this evening. Mr. Jones said he had arranged for officials of the Air Department to proceed immediately to the scene of the accident to make a thorough investigation and furnish a full report to him. “Preliminary steps have been taken to prevent unauthorised interference with the wreckage, said the Minister, and Squadron-Leader Olsen from Hobsonville was instructed to proceed to the scene of the accident immediately advice was received. ’ ’ i PRIME MINISTER’S SYMPATHY WELLINGTON, Last Night. Sincere sympathy with the relatives of the two pilots who lost their lives in the accident to the Lockheed was expressed this evening by the Prime Minister, Rt. Hon. M. J. Savage, "Words can hardly express one’s feelings at the loss of life in the unfortunate occurrence,” said Mr. Savage. "The company concerned has been remarkably successful, running without accident up to to-day. Had there been a number of passengers aboard the air-liner the consequences might have been much more serious, but our sympathy goes out to the relatives of two men who wmre the main instruments in carrying on the service.” SERVICE AMENDED ONE FLIGHT EACH WAY. WELLINGTON, Last Night. Union Airways announced to-day that the usual services between Auckland and Wellington and vice versa will be flown to-morrow. As from Thursday, however, there will' be only one daily service each way. The 8.45 departure from Wellington and thj noon [ departure from Auckland will be cancelled until further notice. Starting on Thursday, the Lockheed will leave Auckland at 8 a.m. daily and flying via New Plymouth and Palmerston North, will carry passengers and mails to Wellington, being due at Rongotai at 11 a.m. The same ’plane is scheduled to leave Rongotai again at noon. It is due at Auckland at 2.30 p.m.