’Plane Crashes to Destruction

Manawatu Times, Volume LIV, Issue 7270, 25 September 1933, Page 6

’Plane Crashes to Destruction

Three Men Injured In Mishap at Blenheim

NOTHING SALVAGEABLE FROM WRECKAGE

Fcr Press Association. BLENHEIM, Last Night,

A serious aviation crash occurred at the Blenheim aerodrome just after midday to-day when the Marlborough Aero Club’s three-seatcr Hermes Spartan, piloted by Mr. A. E. Willis, with two passengers aboard, struck tho ground heavily iu landing from Wellington. The machine overturned and bounced several times before being reduced to a mass of wreckage. Mr. Willis miraculously escaped with minor facial injuries, together with cuts and abrasions to various parts of the legs and body, but his passengers nere more seriously injured. They v,ere:—Mr. E. Y. Maiudonald, a motor proprietor, of Recfton and Mr. B. Cummings, a motor driver, of WakeHeld, Nelson. Both were rushed to hospital in an ambulance, but the extent of their injuries is not known at present.

Messrs. Maiudonald and Cummings arrived at Blenheim from the West Coast o:i Friday evening, and chartered (ho ’plane on a visit to Wellington. They flew to the capital on Saturday morning and took off from Rongotai on the return journey shortly after FI o’clock this morning. Mr. Willis, who is an experienced pilot, holding his B license, states that when lie was well across Cook Strait lie noticed something wrong with the elevator controls, it being impossible to climb or put the machine into a glide. The ’plane was inclined to drop, but Mr. Willis kept her in the air until they were over Blenheim by revving up the engine. Then when over the aerodrome he shut off the engine at a fairly low height, and attempted a pancake landing, but the machine got her nose down and struck heavily, turning over several times before coming to rest, Mr. Willis was partially stunned, but succeeded iu dragging his two semiconscious companions from the passengers’ cockpit, and assistance was speedily at hand. The llermes Spartan ZK—ABZ, was the property of the club, and was recently completely rebuilt at Timaru, after having crashed at Rongotai. It piovcd a very useful machine, but is now a total loss, practically nothing being saleable. The club has been (lying its own plane now sinco 1928, and though it has suffered a scries of minor crashes, this is the first occasion, on which members have been injured, except for a few minor cuts sustained by a trainee pupil on one of his first solo flights. The only other serious accident in Blenheim occurred to a visiting machine a couple of years ago.

“Buck-Jumped” Through the Air JAMMED ELEVATOR CONTROLS Per Press Association. BLENHEIM, Last Night. Mr. Maiudonald is suffering from severe concussion and other injuries and his condition is grave. Mr. Cummings lias a broken nose, other facial injuries and many cuts and abrasions, but, his condition is not regarded as serious. Both are suffering severely from shock.

Mr. Willis, who escaped comparatively lightly states that, owing to something jamming the elevator controls, he was unable to do anything except ffv more or less level, which he achieved by putting on bursts of tho engine every time tho nose of the machine fell. In effect, the machine covered some ten miles “pig jumping” through the air, falling every time the engine was eased and bucking up as the full throttle was opened. He considers he could have kept going in this fashion till the petrol ran out, but ultimately, after vain attempts to free the controls, he decided to effect a crash landing. The maehino struck the ground as a speed of SO miles an hour and turned over several times.

Experienced pilots consider that in all the circumstances Mr. Willis did well in obviating greater disaster.

The Director of Air Services (Squadron-Leader T. M. Wilkes) and Flight-Lieutenant. Buckley arrived by air from Christchurch and inspected the wreckage with a view to an inquiry into the crash.