Date:	Saturday 4 July 2009
Time:	09:30
Type:	de Havilland DH.82A Tiger Moth
Owner/operator:	David Firth & Sheila Ann Firth
Registration:	G-AXAN
MSN:	85951
Year of manufacture:	1943
Engine model:	De Havilland Gipsy Major 1F
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 2
Aircraft damage:	Substantial
Category:	Accident
Location:	Sandtoft Airfield, Belton Road, Epworth, Belton, Lincolnshire -   United Kingdom
Phase:	Initial climb
Nature:	Private
Departure airport:	Sandtoft Aerodrome, Lincolnshire (EGCF)
Destination airport:	Sandtoft Aerodrome, Lincolnshire (EGCF)
Investigating agency:	AAIB
Confidence Rating:	Accident investigation report completed and information captured

Narrative:
de Havilland DH.82A Tiger Moth MSN 85951: Taken on charge as EM720, notionally at 15 MU RAF Wroughton 16.2.43. However, placed into long-term storage in ‘purgatory’ in the Oxfordshire area; returned to Morris Motors at Cowley, Oxford for erection 5.8.45. To 20 MU RAF Aston Down, Minchinhampton, Gloucestershire 11.10.45. To RAF St Mawgan 10.4.46 and ferried to French AF 13.4.46; arrives Romorantin 14.4.46 and Struick off RAF charge upon transfer to the French Air Force. Probably coded "85" in French service.

Inspected at Aix-les-Milles 12.10.50 and French civil registered as F-BDMM (C of R 19929) on 6.12.50 to Etat/Ministere des Armees; operated Aero Club de Marseille, Aix-les-Milles. Transferred to unknown operator at Nimes in 1954. Registration F-BDMM cancelled in May 1955. Re-registered January 1960 to Aero Club de Marseille, Beynes. Re-registered later in 1960 to Aero Club d'Annonay et de la Vallee du Rhone, St Rambert d'Albon. Registration F-BDMM cancelled 17.2.69 as sold to UK (imported by Gilbert Aeroservices, Norwich).

UK regsitered as G-AXAN (C of R R10730/1) on 21.2.69 to Alfred Indyk, London NW3 (aircraft based at Horsham St Faith, Norwich, Norfolk). Regsitration cancelled 22.2.69 and re-registered (C of R R10730/2) on 13.3.69 to Anthony James (Tony) Cheshire, Croydon, Surrey (aircraft based at Denham, Buckinghamshire). C of A issued 15.4.69. C of A lapsed 14.4.71 and airframe overhauled at Rochester, Kent early 1972. C of A renewed 24.5.72. Stored Bodmin, Cornwall in 1976. Damaged in accident at Much Marcle, Gloucestershire 12.8.77; to Staverton, Gloucestershire for rebuild; reflown after rebuild by 13.8.78 and later based at Badminton, Gloucestershire. C of A lapsed 17.9.84; renewed 7.10.85.

Re-registered (C of R G-AXAN/R3) on 15.10.85 to Comarket Aviation Ltd, Staverton, Gloucestershire. Painted in 1945-era RAF colours as EM720 (by 1987). Re-registered (C of R G-AXAN/R4) 7.6.90 to Mark Ford Newman, Moulton St Mary, Norwich (aicraft based at Old Buckenham, Norfolk). Re-registered (C of R G-AXAN/R5) 26.10.90 to Michael Edward Carrell, Buntingford, Hertfordshire, (aircraft based at Moulton St Mary, Norwich, Norfolk; later at Little Gransden). C of A lapsed 17.3.99. For sale (11.99) by Bruce Ellis of Cambs Aerofoils.

Sold 2003 to Colin Knowles, t/a Angels One Five; for overhaul by Skysport Engineering, Rotary Farm; first reflown after overhaul 1.8.2003. Re-registrerd (C of R G-AXAN/R6) on 6.8.2003 to Leading Edge Marketing Ltd (Colin Knowles/Angels One Five), Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire (aircraft based at Old Warden, Biggleswade, Bedfordshire). CofA renewed 28.8.2003. Re-registered (C of R G-AXAN/R7) 15.5.2008 to David Firth & Sheila Ann Firth, Worksop, Nottinghamshire; delivered 3.5.2008.

Damaged when overturned on landing Sandtoft 1.6.2008; According to a contempprary local newspaper report (see link #6):

"A Fire and Rescue spokeswoman said: "The two passengers on board were self-rescued prior to the arrival of the fire service. The pilot was uninjured but the male passenger suffered minor injuries. The casualty was left in the care of ambulance personnel."

The passenger did not need hospital treatment. Staff at Sandtoft Aviation did not wish to comment on the incident but Humberside Police sergeant Andy Clarke confirmed police were called. "We were informed at around 2.30pm a small light aircraft had crashed," he said. We attended and investigations are continuing." After the emergency operation, firefighters assisted staff at the aerodrome in moving the damaged plane to a safe location"

According to the AAIB Report into this accident (see link #2):

"The pilot was landing at Sandtoft Aerodrome, which has a paved Runway 05/23 and, adjacent, a strip of grass mown short for safety. There was a variable crosswind component so the pilot elected to land on the grass strip.

During the landing roll, the aircraft veered to the right into an area of long grass and stopped quickly, turning over. The pilot estimates that he lost directional control partly due to the wet condition of the grass, and the crosswind, and that the aircraft was travelling at less than 20 mph when it turned over.

Nature of Damage to airframe: Broken propeller, damage to fin, rudder, upper mainplane and engine cowls"

Repaired 2008-2009. Badly damaged when forced landed in tree after engine failure on take-off Sandtoft 4.7.2009 (first flight after repairs). According to the AAIB Report into the incident (see link #1)

"The aircraft was taking off from runway 23 in good weather conditions. Its initial climb was described by the pilot as normal until, at a height of about 250 ft, the engine faltered but continued to run. The pilot judged that there was insufficient runway ahead to land safely and that the field beyond was unsuitable, as it contained high standing crops in which the aircraft might turn over.

He managed to gain some height and selected a short mown field to the right of the field of crops. He turned towards it and thought that he had cleared a tree in the undershoot, when the engine lost all power.

He lowered the nose of the aircraft to maintain flying speed, the aircraft struck the tree and became lodged in it. The pilot and his passenger unstrapped and climbed down from the tree, uninjured. The aircraft was extensively damaged but there was no fire. At the time of this report, neither the pilot nor his maintenance organisation had determined the cause of the engine problem.

Nature of Damage to airframe: Damage to all wings, the left main landing gear and the right engine bearer."

Sandtoft Airfield, also known as Sandtoft Aerodrome, is in Belton, North Lincolnshire, England on the south side of the M180 motorway, approximately 12 miles north-east of Doncaster, and 7 nautical miles southwest of Scunthorpe. It is managed and operated by E-Plane Ltd

Stored Sandtoft pending repairs; moved to Finningley for rebuild [3.2012]; first reflown after repairs 27.2.2015. C of A renewed 12.3.2015. Re-registered (C of R G-AXAN/R8) 19.3.2015 to Tiger Leasing Co Ltd (Richard & William Flanagan), Gamston; operated by Blue Eye Aviation Ltd, Netherthorpe, Worksop, Nottinghamshire.

Re-registered (C of R G-AXAN/R9) 4.12.2015 to Duxford Consulting Ltd (Amanda Jane Harrison/Robin Bedford Russell), Duxford; to be flown by Amanda Harrison to Australia late 2015 (but postponed); based at Biggin Hill, Kent [2017]. Re-registered (C of R G-AXAN/R10) on 19.4.18 to Amanda Jane Harrison, London WC1 (remained based at Biggin Hill). Harrison finally departed Biggin Hill for Darwin, NT, Australia 11.5.2019 but refused Pakistan overflight; returned to Rhodes, Greece homebound, but then forced landed with engine failure. According to one published source (see link #9 for the full story):

"After departing Rhodes, however, G-AXAN suffered a partial engine failure and Amanda had to return to the Greek airport. The engine was fixed within a few days and then it was on over the sea to Cyprus and then a further overwater flight to Beirut. It was there that the political situation began to deteriorate in the Gulf, particularly over the Straits of Hormuz, right on the route. Reports of tankers being hi-jacked and a UAV being shot down indicated it would be too dangerous to proceed.

Amanda determined to return to England, aiming to try again when the political situation settled down, but another engine failure when departing Rhodes followed by a nerve-wracking downwind landing while losing power, meant the aircraft had to be put in container for shipping to the UK".

C of A lapsed 26.2.2020. Currently registered

1. AAIB Bulletin: 11/2009 G-AXAN EW/G2009/07/03:
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5422eb53e5274a1317000069/De_Havilland_DH82A_Tiger_Moth__G-AXAN_11-09.pdf
2. AAIB Bulletin AAIB Bulletin: 11/2008 G-AXAN EW/G2008/06/01 (Accident of 1.6.2008): https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/542303c140f0b61342000b1d/DH82A_Tiger_Moth__G-AXAN_11-08.pdf
3. CAA History of G-AXAN 1969-85: https://cwsprduksumbraco.blob.core.windows.net/g-info/HistoricalLedger/G-AXAN.pdf
4. https://air-britain.com/pdfs/production-lists/DH82.pdf
5. http://www.airhistory.org.uk/dh/p859.html
6. https://www.aerialvisuals.ca/AirframeDossier.php?Serial=118392
7. https://forums.flyer.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=44686&hilit=ascot
8. https://www.flyer.co.uk/amanda-harrison-sets-off-on-solo2darwin-tiger-moth-flight/
9. https://www.amandajharrison.com/adventures
10. https://navalairhistory.com/2019/10/16/fourteen-hours-over-the-med-in-a-biplane-solo2darwin/
11. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandtoft_Airfield

Other occurrences involving this aircraft

14 May 2022

G-AXAN

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0

Private Farm Strip, near Duxford, Cambridgeshire

w/o

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
12-Nov-2009 00:13	harro	Added
12-Nov-2009 00:15	harro	Updated
12-Nov-2009 00:15	harro	Updated
12-Nov-2009 00:15	harro	Updated
26-Aug-2012 16:18	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Operator, Source, Embed code, Narrative]
14-Dec-2014 19:58	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Operator, Location, Departure airport, Source, Embed code, Narrative]
07-Nov-2016 21:50	Dr.John Smith	Updated [Embed code]
07-Nov-2016 21:51	Dr.John Smith	Updated [Embed code]
07-Nov-2016 21:52	Dr.John Smith	Updated [Embed code]
07-Nov-2016 21:56	Dr.John Smith	Updated [Time, Operator, Location, Destination airport, Source]
10-Feb-2022 13:54	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Operator, Source, Embed code, Narrative, Category]
10-Feb-2022 13:56	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Narrative]