ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 18322
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| Date: | Sunday 2 December 1956 |
| Time: | 18:10 LT |
| Type: | Auster J/4 Archer |
| Owner/operator: | Auster Aircraft Ltd |
| Registration: | G-AIZT |
| MSN: | 2090 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Gaddesby, near Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | Initial climb |
| Nature: | Test |
| Departure airport: | Rearsby, Leicestershire |
| Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire | |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources |
Auster J/4 Archer: First registered (C of R 11112/1, later R.1981/1) on 14/1/1947 to Auster Aircraft Ltd., Rearsby Aerodrome, Leicester.
Written off (damaged beyond repair) when crashed at Gaddesby, near Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire 2/12/1956, shortly after take off from Rearsby, whilst on a test flight. The aircraft flew - and crashed - with no-one aboard!
Per an eyewitness report: "G-AIZT, took off from Rearsby at 17.50 hours and landed at 18.10. It was weekend holiday time and a few Auster employees wanted to fly on that day and the aircraft was parked out alongside the canteen at Rearsby. This was arranged in advance, because it was to be pushed in the nearby hanger. Surprisingly, the engine started and the plane taxied away. People came out to have a look, and as they did, the aircraft turned around and then the engine stopped.
The pilot got out, began to swing the propeller backwards, then went back to the cockpit, and made some adjustments. He then swung the propeller in the correct direction, the engine started immediately, and the force of the propellor turning flung the pilot to the ground. The Auster went off on its own, unpiloted, and took off. Once airborne, it began to turn in a large diameter circle, and the aircraft pulled very gently to the right due to the slipstream direction, and moved away from the airfield.
Rearsby ATC telephoned the Police who arrived very quickly. The aircraft, with no-one aboard, was flying itself, and had climbed to around 4,000 feet, and was still going around in a large diameter circle. The Police drove along the road in the direction the aircraft was taking to alert the local people.
Eventually, the engine stopped, and the aircraft turned to the left and came very gently down. It was getting close to Melton Mowbray, and the aircraft turned at around 100 feet up. At Melton Mowbray airfield, and by a miracle, the plane came straight down the runway, and went on towards the end of the runway. The wheels just clipped the hedge.
Registration G-AIZT cancelled by the Secretary of State Air Ministry 16/4/1957 as aircraft "destroyed"
Sources:
1. https://cwsprduksumbraco.blob.core.windows.net/g-info/HistoricalLedger/G-AIZT.pdf
2. http://www.austerj4.co.uk/?page_id=163
3. http://austerhg.org/prod_list/pages.php?page=1989
4. G-AIZT at Cambridge 3/5/1952: https://www.flickr.com/photos/dwhitworth/5522974591/in/album-72157632558965323/
5. https://www.rafa.org.uk/melton-mowbray/wp-content/uploads/sites/55/2019/04/MAS-Newsletter-Ed-No-3-November-2013.pdf
6. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaddesby
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 17-May-2008 11:10 | ASN archive | Added |
| 08-Sep-2012 13:58 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Time, Operator, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Other fatalities, Location, Phase, Nature, Departure airport, Source, Embed code, Damage, Narrative] |
| 08-Dec-2012 12:19 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Location, Destination airport, Source, Embed code, Narrative] |
| 15-Jul-2020 22:38 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Time, Source, Narrative] |
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