Date:	Friday 12 August 1949
Time:	day
Type:	Saunders-Roe SR.A/1
Owner/operator:	Saunders-Roe Ltd
Registration:	TG271
MSN:	SR.A/1/03
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	Solent Estuary, off Cowes, Isle of Wight -   United Kingdom
Phase:	Landing
Nature:	Test
Departure airport:	Cowes Harbour, Cowes, Isle of Wight
Destination airport:	Cowes Harbour, Cowes, Isle of Wight
Confidence Rating:	Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources

Narrative:
Saunders Roe SR.A/1 TG271: Third prototype (of three aircraft built). This airframe was given more powerful Beryl turbojet engines to help it achieve better performance. First flight was recorded on August 17th, 1948 and it was later wooing crowds over Farnborough in September during the classic British-hosted air show. It was this airframe that managed to record a maximum recorded speed of 624 miles per hour during dive testing.

Written off (destroyed) 12/8/49 when, on landing in the Solent Estuary, off Cowes, Isle of Wight, a submerged log holed the front hull and ripped off the starboard stabilizing float. Despite his best efforts, the pilot - the famous test Pilot Eric "Winkle" Brown - could not keep the starboard wing from digging in and cartwheeling TG271 onto its back. Struggling free underwater, Brown almost succumbed, but was held up by Geoffrey Tyson, the Saro test pilot responsible for the majority of the SR A/1 testing, who had leapt off the supporting launch when he saw Brown in trouble. Despite extensive searching, the sunken third SR A/1 prototype was never located.

A couple of contemporary local newspaper reports have further details:

"Western Daily Press" - Saturday 13 August 1949

JET FIGHTER PILOT SAVED
A SAUNDERS-ROE flying boat jet fighter turned over and sank off Cowes, Isle of Wight, yesterday, while alighting on the water. The accident was seen by hundreds of holidaymakers along the shore of the Isle of Wight, who had watched the jet fighter throughout its test flight.

The fighter sank within four and a-half minutes of its final impact with the water, and the pilot, Lieut.-Commdr. E. M. Brown was rescued by a launch and taken hospital at Cowes. It was later stated that he was not injured.

Lieut.-Commdr. Brown was the first man to land a jet aircraft on a seaborne "carrier."

"Western Morning News" - Saturday 13 August 1949

JET FLYING BOAT CRASHES
PILOT SAVED
A Saunders-Roe flying boat jet fighter turned over and sank off Cowes, Isle of Wight, yesterday, after striking some driftwood while alighting on the water.

The accident was seen hundreds of holiday-makers. The ferry boat, Norris Castle, was close by, and people on board had a grandstand view of the rescue of the pilot, Lieut.-Com. E. M. Brown. He was taken to hospital suffering from shock.

Only three of the Saunders-Roe A.1 single-seater fighters have been built, and they are the only jet-propelled flying boats in the world. They were built for the Pacific war, but the campaign ended before they were ready for operations.

Lieut.-Com. Brown is the Navy's chief test pilot. Aged 29, he is a deck landing expert. In 1945, he made flying history by landing a Sea Vampire on the deck of H.M.S Ocean while she was steaming off the Isle of Wight in a heavy swell".

1. Western Daily Press - Saturday 13 August 1949
2. Western Morning News - Saturday 13 August 1949
3. Final Landings: A Summary of RAF Aircraft and Combat Losses 1946-1949 by Colin Cummings (p 533)
4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saunders-Roe_SR.A%2F1
5. National Archives (PRO Kew) File PA1716/5/2/22: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/9286d2cb-569b-4058-b2b4-0587b98cadb3
6. https://www.militaryfactory.com/aircraft/detail.asp?aircraft_id=1239
7. https://ww2aircraft.net/forum/threads/saunders-roe-sr-a1-jet-fighter-flying-boat.52250/
8. https://www.islandeye.co.uk/history/aircraft_aerospace_and_airfields/saro-sr-a1-jet-flying-boat.html
9. http://all-aero.com/index.php/contactus/54-planes-p-q-e-r-s/9591-saunders-roe-sr-a1

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
01-Apr-2020 00:14	Dr. John Smith	Added