Date:	Saturday 9 July 2005
Time:	17:21
Type:	de Havilland DH.89A Dragon Rapide
Owner/operator:	Classic Wings
Registration:	G-AIYR
MSN:	6676
Year of manufacture:	1943
Engine model:	de Havilland Gipsy Queen 3
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 9
Aircraft damage:	Substantial
Category:	Accident
Location:	Duxford Airfield (EGSU) -   United Kingdom
Phase:	Standing
Nature:	Passenger
Departure airport:	Duxford Airport (QFO/EGSU)
Destination airport:	Duxford Airport (QFO/EGSU)
Investigating agency:	AAIB
Confidence Rating:	Accident investigation report completed and information captured

Narrative:
The aircraft was being used for a number of short consecutive pleasure . Following one of these flights the engines were closed down whilst the passengers were disembarked and a new group embarked. This took approximately 10 minutes.

With the port engine running the pilot started the starboard engine and observed flames appearing over the leading edge of the lower starboard wing, outboard of the engine. No fuel priming was carried out to either engine prior to start-up. The pilot closed down both engines and evacuated the passengers and himself. Once he had ensured that the passengers were safely away from the aircraft, he assisted ground staff to extinguish the fire.

An eye witness, who was standing in front of and to the right facing the aircraft, saw a long flame shoot out of the exhaust of the starboard engine during start-up (the exhaust being on the starboard side of the engine). This flame started a fire on the rear fabric-covered under-surface of the lower starboard wing, just outboard of the engine.

Engineering examination

A detailed examination was carried out by the operators engineer who found no evidence of the fire initiating inside the wings structure. No explanation, other than a flame emanating from the engines exhaust, could be found to account for the initiation of the fire. The engine was examined and test run and there were no fuel or oil leaks. The test runs and subsequent flight tests showed no fault with the engine and no adjustments had to be made to the engine systems following the fire.

Other information

There was a taxiway edge storm drain within one metre of the point on the aircrafts wing where the fire started. Examination of this drain revealed no evidence of burning/scorching or having contained inflammable gas or liquid.

In the early 1950s a number of DH89A aircraft suffered start-up fires. As a result, in 1954, the aircraft manufacturer issued Technical News Sheet series CT(89) number 17 titled Fire Precautions.

This News Sheet mentioned the application of an engine modification, which had been embodied on G-AIYR, specific maintenance inspections and adherence to the engine shutdown procedure. This advice was repeated in an article in the August 2003 edition of The de Havilland Gazette, which is an informal news update for Technical News Sheet subscribers published by de Havilland Support Limited, the airframe Design Authority.

Nature of Damage to airframe: Per the AAIB report "Lower right wing burned for about 3.3 metres of span outboard of the engine."

1. AAIB: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/54230257ed915d1371000ba3/DH89A_Dragon_Rapide__G-AIYR.pdf
2. CAA: https://siteapps.caa.co.uk/g-info/rk=AIYR
3. http://web.archive.org/web/20160507114715/http://www.airliners.net:80/photo/De-Havilland-DH-89A/1624176 [photo of incident]
4. http://www.duxfordflying.co.uk/productservice.php?productserviceid=513.

Other occurrences involving this aircraft

13 May 1947	G-AIYR	private	0	Hawarden Airfield (EGNR), Wales		sub
8 September 2012	G-AIYR	Classic Wings	0	Duxford Airfield (EGSU)		min
19 June 2022	G-AIYR	Classic Wings	0	Duxford Airfield (EGSU), Duxford, Cambridgeshire		min

Duxford Airfield (EGSU), Duxford, Cambridgeshire, England, UK - 15th September 2010

Duxford Airfield, Cambridgeshire, England, UK - 15th September 2010

De Havilland DH89A Dragon Rapide ‘HG691’ (G-AIYR) seen taxiing out on a pleasure flight as part of the ‘Classic Wings’ operation. 2015 Flying Legends Airshow. Duxford, Cambridgeshire, UK. 12-7-2015

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
26-Jan-2008 22:45	JINX	Added
18-Aug-2008 19:34	JINX	Updated
18-Aug-2008 19:44	JINX	Updated
23-Dec-2011 20:23	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Operator, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative]
08-Dec-2012 11:48	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Source, Embed code, Narrative]
12-Aug-2016 17:28	Dr.John Smith	Updated [Time, Location, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Embed code, Narrative]
29-Aug-2020 06:07	Peter Clarke	Updated [Photo]
30-Aug-2020 12:48	Peter Clarke	Updated [Photo]