ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 19457
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| Date: | Sunday 30 November 1947 |
| Time: | day |
| Type: | Taylorcraft Auster I |
| Owner/operator: | Hugh John Smythe-Piggot c/o Skyways Ltd |
| Registration: | G-AHAJ |
| MSN: | 221 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | near Cranleigh, Waverley, Surrey -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | Initial climb |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Dunsfold Aerodrome, Godalming, Surrey (EGTD) |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources |
Ex-RAF Taylorcraft Plus D LB374. Delivered to 654 Squadron on 4/12/42 and flown to 47 MU for packaging on 23/12/42. However, it was not shipped abroad and instead released for 652 Squadron on 8/2/43, passing to 656 Squadron on 23/3/43, and shortly afterwards to 43 OTU on 7/4/43. On 18/5/43, LB374 was badly damaged when a pupil carried out several unauthorised dummy-runs in a field at Wimborne St. Giles, Dorset. When a gust of wind hit the aircraft during a run, the pupil's experience proved insufficient to avert a stall which in turn caused it to crash. Conveyed to Rearsby for repairs, LB374 was delivered to 20 MU on 17/8/43 where it remained Struck off charge 12/1/46 and sold to Taylorcraft Aeroplane (England) Ltd, Britannia Works, Thurmaston, Leicester. First registered to them (C of R 9885/1; C of A 7427) on 1/2/46 as G-AHAJ.
Sold on and re-registered (C of R 9885/2) on 27/4/46 to Cecil Kay (Aircraft) Ltd., Birmingham. Aircraft based at Elmdon, Birmingham. Registration cancelled 23/6/47. Sold on and re-registered (C of R 9885/3) on 15/7/47 to Hugh John Smythe-Piggot c/o Skyways Ltd. Aircraft based at Dunsfold Aerodrome, near Godalming, Surrey
Written off (damaged beyond repair) when crashed at Cranleigh, Surrey on 30/11/1947 shortly after take-off from Dunsfold, Surrey. According to a contemporary local newspaper report, which gives further details of the incident (Derby Daily Telegraph) - Monday 1 December 1947):
"KILLED IN AIR CRASH
Hugh Smyth-Piggott, a Skyways pilot and son of Mr J. R. W. Smyth-Piggott, a British Celanese employee, of 65, Moor-street, Spondon, was killed yesterday when his two-seater Auster crashed in thick mist near Cranleigh, Surrey. Mr. Piggott was employed at the Skyways airfield at Dunsfold, near Cranleigh.
Registration G-AHAJ cancelled 2/2/1948 as "crashed". Wreckage recovered to Farnborough for accident investigation.
Sources:
1. Derby Daily Telegraph - Monday 01 December 1947
2. National Archives (PRO Kew) File BT 217/2114: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C576268
3. https://cwsprduksumbraco.blob.core.windows.net/g-info/HistoricalLedger/G-AHAJ.pdf
4. http://austerhg.org/prod_list/pages.php?page=120
5. Auster Quarterly Vol 1 No 3 Autumn 1975 p 79: http://austerhg.org/auster_mags/Auster%20Quarterly%20Volume%201%20Number%203.pdf
6. http://sussexhistoryforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=15853.0
7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cranleigh
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 17-May-2008 11:10 | ASN archive | Added |
| 09-Dec-2012 11:10 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Operator, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Other fatalities, Location, Phase, Nature, Departure airport, Source, Damage, Narrative] |
| 29-Nov-2019 01:36 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Time, Departure airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 26-Mar-2020 20:32 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Total fatalities, Source, Narrative] |
| 06-May-2023 19:19 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [[Total fatalities, Source, Narrative]] |
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