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Date: | Friday 15 August 1958 |
Time: | day |
Type: | Supermarine Swift FR Mk 5 |
Owner/operator: | A&AEE Boscombe Down |
Registration: | XD975 |
MSN: | |
Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
Location: | Wisley airfield, near Ripley, Surrey -
United Kingdom
|
Phase: | Approach |
Nature: | Ferry/positioning |
Departure airport: | RAF Aldergrove, Belfast, Northern Ireland (BFS/EGAA) |
Destination airport: | Wisley airfield, near Ripley, Surrey (EGTW) |
Confidence Rating: | Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources |
Narrative:Written off 15/08/1958. During a delivery flight from 23 MU, RAF Aldergrove, to the A&AEE at Boscombe Down the pilot allowed his approach speed to Wisley, Surrey to decay too far. Control was lost and XD975 crashed inverted onto the runway with full power applied. Lateral rocking with a slight nose up attitude just before crashing has all the hallmarks of a stall as the pilot attempted to slow after the overshoot. A tragic end to what should of been a routine flight. The pilot, Flight Lt John Edwards Elliott, was killed.
According to a contemporary newspaper report ("Coventry Evening Telegraph" - Friday 15 August 1958):
"JET CRASH: PILOT DIES
An R.A.F. Swift jet plane crashed at Wisley airfield, near Ripley, Surrey, today. The aircraft overturned on landing and caught fire. The pilot was killed. The Swift was from Aldergrove, Northern Ireland, and was coming in to land at Wisley"
Sources:
1. Halley, James (1999) Broken Wings – Post-War Royal Air Force Accidents Tunbridge Wells: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd. p.197 ISBN 0-85130-290-4.
2. Royal Air Force Aircraft XA100-XZ999 (James J Halley, Air Britain, 2001 p 21)
3. Coventry Evening Telegraph - Friday 15 August 1958
4.
http://www.ukserials.com/losses-1958.htm 5. National Archives (PRO Kew) File AVIA 5/38/S2922:
https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C6578702 6.
http://web.archive.org/web/20171123224900/http://www.ejection-history.org.uk:80/aircraft_by_type/swift/swift.htm 7.
http://web.archive.org/web/20170624000012/http://www.millionmonkeytheater.com:80/Swift.html 8.
http://sussexhistoryforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=14460.0 9.
http://www.ukairfieldguide.net/airfields/Wisley 10.
http://www.ukserials.com/results.php?serial=XD Revision history:
Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
14-Apr-2013 01:31 |
Dr. John Smith |
Added |
26-Jun-2013 18:31 |
Nepa |
Updated [Operator, Destination airport, Narrative] |
14-Oct-2013 11:24 |
Nepa |
Updated [Aircraft type, Operator] |
26-Jun-2014 00:33 |
angels one five |
Updated [Aircraft type, Nature, Narrative] |
26-Jun-2014 00:35 |
angels one five |
Updated [Narrative] |
13-Feb-2020 23:09 |
Dr. John Smith |
Updated [Time, Operator, Location, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
18-Feb-2020 21:28 |
Dr. John Smith |
Updated [Source] |