SERIOUS CRASH

Southland Times, Issue 22293, 7 April 1934, Page 6

SERIOUS CRASH

MOTH PLANE OCCUPANT’S NARROW ESCAPE MACHINE DAMAGED (Per United Press Association.) Palmerston North, April 6. Developing a steep semi-spin after apparently stalling at a height of 200 feet, a Moth plane, owned by the Manawatu Aero Club, and piloted by Mr J. W. Rodden, the sole occupant, crashed in a field near Milson Aerodrome at 7.30, the pilot having a remarkable escape. Mr Rodden, who has done five hours’ solo flying, was descending after a short flight fairly slowly for a practice landing when the accident occurred as a result, it is believed, of loss of speed. The plane hit the ground with great force, making a hole about a foot deep where the nose struck, and then bounced back and stood on its nose at a steep angle with the front of the fuselage crushed, the wing edges resting on the ground, and the tail practically straight up. The pilot, dazed but almost unhurt, was able to climb out. Luckily there was no occupant of the front cockpit, otherwise he would have been killed instantly. Mr Rodden struck his face on the cowling when he was thrown forward and received abrasions about the eyes. In an interview he said that he considered that he had had a miraculous escape. He is now suffering slightly from shock. The plane, though damaged, is considered repairable. This is the same machine as that in which SquadronLeader M. C. Macgregor, the club's instructor, sustained severe injuries in a crash in December, 1932.