ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 281147
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| Date: | Wednesday 15 July 1981 |
| Time: | day |
| Type: |  Enstrom F-28A-UK |
| Owner/operator: | George Philip Grant-Suttie (regd. owner) |
| Registration: | G-BACH |
| MSN: | 094 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Location: | Lakeside Country Club, Wharf Road, Frimley Green, Camberley, Surrey -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | Landing |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Fairoaks Airport, Chobham, Surrey (EGTF) |
| Private Helipad, Frimley Green, Camberley, Surrey |
On 15 July 1981 Enstrom F-28A G-BACH made a forced landing at Frimley. Presumably it was an auto-rotatitive landing which, unfortunately, ended in a pond at the Lakeside Country Club, Wharf Road, Frimley Green, Camberley, Surrey.One might have thought that this would hasten its end but, on the basis of its documented history with the CAA, that does not seem to be so!
On the date of the incident G-BACH was registered to an owner in Scotland. Its subsequent owner, to whom it was not registered until 24 August 1981, was John Woodhouse of the Fleet Country Club (now renamed The Lakeside Country Club) - whose address was much more proximate to the Frimley pond - which leads me to wonder whether he'd bought the Enstrom before 15 July, but not yet registered his acquisition, and was flying it that day. However its presumed dunking does not seem to have resulted in its de-registration. At least not until 1994!
G-BACH seems to have changed hands four times after the incident on 15 July 1981 - being registered to two owners in the south-east and then two more in the west midlands - before finally, on 12 July 1994, the CAA cancelled its registration as "permanently withdrawn from use". One must assume that in the intervening thirteen years what was being traded was simply a damaged airframe. This theory is born out by a note in BCAR 1919 - 1999 which says that G-BACH was stored near Coventry in 1985 and that parts of it, along with parts from two other Enstroms, were used for 'fund raising' near Somersham, the composite airframe being marked G-BACH.
But to get back to the point at which I started, I've found nothing whatsoever as to why G-BACH had to make a forced landing on 15 July 1981; or why this ended in the lake at Frimley; or how it was extracted from the lake; or what damage it suffered from its forced landing and presumed immersion; or the consequences thereof for those who were on board at the time.
Sources:
1. Reading Evening Post - Thursday 16 July 1981
2. CAA: https://cwsprduksumbraco.blob.core.windows.net/g-info/HistoricalLedger/G-BACH-1.pdf
3. CAA: https://cwsprduksumbraco.blob.core.windows.net/g-info/HistoricalLedger/G-BACH-2.pdf
4. https://sussexhistoryforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=17442.0
5. http://www.rotorspot.nl/product/f28.php
6. https://www.ukairfieldguide.net/airfields/Frimley
7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frimley
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 06-Aug-2022 00:09 | Dr. John Smith | Added |
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