Date:	Sunday 16 December 2007
Time:	11:58
Type:	Luscombe 8E Silvaire Deluxe
Owner/operator:	Private
Registration:	G-AKUI
MSN:	2464
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Category:	Accident
Location:	Rectory Farm, Admaston, near Rugeley, Staffordshire -   United Kingdom
Phase:	En route
Nature:	Private
Departure airport:	Abbots Bromley, Staffordshire
Destination airport:	Abbots Bromley, Staffordshire
Investigating agency:	AAIB
Confidence Rating:	Accident investigation report completed and information captured

Narrative:
The pilot of ZK-KAY, a Pacific Aerospace PAC 750XL, was flying under Visual Flight Rules (VFR) on a cross-country flight, tracking south-east, close to Blithfield Reservoir. The pilot and passenger of Luscombe 8E Silvaire Deluxe G-AKUI were on a local flight from their base near the reservoir. G-AKUI entered a turn to the right shortly prior to the collision, possibly to avoid a third aircraft which later radar analysis showed was nearby.

"This aircraft, a Luscombe 8E Silvaire, was owned by an individual who was not a pilot, but an engineer. He had purchased the aircraft some years previously, and had restored it to a very good condition. He had established an informal arrangement with the pilot (who had previously owned a similar aircraft) and the two often flew together in the aircraft. Passengers who had flown with the pilot commented that he was circumspect, and took care to look out in the direction of a turn before manoeuvring.

On the day of the accident, the owner and pilot went to the aircraft’s base at Abbots Bromley, intending to have a short flight. They mentioned in conversation before departure that they did not intend to land away. The aircraft was not fitted with a transponder. A GPS receiver, capable of recording the aircraft’s flight, was on board but was destroyed in the accident. Therefore, no definite information exists as to the altitudes at which the aircraft was flown.

Radar information indicates that the aircraft took off from Abbots Bromley at about 11:50 hrs. At 11:55 hrs, the aircraft was flying on a southerly track in the vicinity of Blithfield Reservoir. Radar information shows that another aircraft, not ZK-KAY, with a relatively lower groundspeed and giving a smaller radar return, was flying on a north-westerly track, to the south-east of G-AKUI.
Thus, the two aircraft were flying towards each other, until, more or less simultaneously, the other aircraft
commenced a turn to the left, and G-AKUI commenced a turn to the right.

G-AKUI’s turn continued until the aircraft was on a roughly easterly heading; the other aircraft had continued
its left turn during this time. G-AKUI and ZK-KAY then collided. In the collision, the left wing of G-AKUI was substantially damaged, and the aircraft was rendered incapable of further flight. The aircraft, missing some pieces of the left wing, fell to the ground and caught fire. The impact with the ground was not survivable.

Fragments of the left-wing structure and covering fell to the ground to the west of the main wreckage site"

The AAIB investigation identified factors which may account for the failure of the "see and avoid" principle. Registration G-AKUI cancelled by the CAA on 26/2/2008 as "destroyed" and "Addressee Status: Deceased"

The crash site of Admaston is a small hamlet in Staffordshire, England just outside the town of Rugeley near to Abbots Bromley and Blithfield Hall.

1. AAIB Final Report; https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5422fae3ed915d13710007e9/Luscombe_8E_Silvaire_Deluxe__G-AKUI_and_Pacific_Aerospace_PAC_750XL__ZK-KAY_02-09.pdf
2. https://cwsprduksumbraco.blob.core.windows.net/g-info/HistoricalLedger/G-AKUI.pdf
3. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/7147344.stm
4. http://rnzaf.proboards.com/thread/4472
5. http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/182306
6. [photo of wreckage] https://www.expressandstar.com/news/2007/12/17/two-killed-in-air-collision/
7. https://www.stokesentinel.co.uk/Mid-air-plane-crash-pair-death-plunge/story-12487141-detail/story.html
8. https://diverdriver.com/accidents/pac-750-fatal-2-rectory-farm-near-rugeley-staffordshire-united-kingdom-16-dec-2007/
9. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_mid-air_collisions_and_incidents_in_the_United_Kingdom#2000s
10. https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2007/dec/17/rachelwilliams.mainsection
11. As N45937: https://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/Search/NNumberResult?NNumberTxt=45937
12. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/542302f1ed915d1371000c01/Luscombe_8E__G-AKUI_05-89.pdf
13. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Admaston,_Staffordshire

G-AKUI was built in 1947, and was first registered in the USA as N45937. It was UK registered as G-AKUI on 24 October 1988. The registration G-AKUI was an \"in period\" 1948-era registration that had been allocated to (but never taken up by) an Avro Tudor II (c/no. 1441, C of R 12220/1) on 25 February 1948. The registration G-AKUI was initially cancelled on 23 April 1951, as the aircraft it was intended for was never built. The CAA record card noted \"CAN BE REISSUED\"...and it was 37 years later.

G-AKUI was involved in a separate incident at Old Sarum, Salisbury, Wiltshire on 26 March 1989 (see link #12 above). Despite being assessed as \"damaged beyond economic repair\", and having the registration cancelled on 8 September 1989, G-AKUI was repaired, returned to service and sold on to a new owner, who restored the registration 21 June 1990. At the time of the above incident, the aircraft held a current Permit to Fly, valid until 30 March 2008.

The registration G-AKUI was cancelled by the CAA for the second time (and the airframe de-registered) on 26 August 2008 as \"aircraft destroyed\" and the registered owner notified as \"Deceased\".

Luscombe 8E Silvaire Deluxe G-AKUI at the 'Great Vintage Flying Weekend', Abingdon, Oxfordshire 14 May 2004

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
21-Oct-2008 11:48	angels one five	Added
12-Feb-2009 12:48	harro	Updated
02-Dec-2012 11:32	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Operator, Source, Embed code, Narrative]
09-Dec-2014 00:46	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Operator, Location, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative]
04-Apr-2024 07:20	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Source, Embed code, Narrative, Category]
04-Apr-2024 07:20	ASN	Updated [[Source, Embed code, Narrative, Category]]