ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 171366
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| Date: | Sunday 24 February 1985 |
| Time: | 13:45 LT |
| Type: |  Gulfstream American GA-7 Cougar |
| Owner/operator: | Graham Leonard Cailes |
| Registration: | G-ECCO |
| MSN: | GA7-0103 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 4 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | English Channel, 1/2 mile S of Wheelers Bay, Ventnor, Isle of Wight -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Eastleigh/Southampton, Hampshire (SOU/EGHI) |
| Eastleigh/Southampton, Hampshire (SOU/EGHI) | |
| Investigating agency: | AIB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information verified through data from accident investigation authorities |
Grumman GA-7 Cougar G-ECCO: Written off (damaged beyond repair) 25.02.1985: Crashed into the sea half a mile South of Wheelers Bay, Ventnor, Isle of Wight. Of the four persons on board, the pilot survived, but one of the three passengers was killed. The other two passengers survived, albeit severely injured.
G-ECCO was on a "round the Isle of Wight flight" to and from Eastleigh/Southampton Airport. The four persons on board were the pilot, his wife, the couple's two-year old daughter, and a family friend. By the time the aircraft had reached St. Catherine's Point, Isle of Wight, it had descended to a very low level (100-150 feet). The pilot, momentarily distracted while he checked his maps, seemed to be unaware of his altitude, and the aircraft flew into the sea. The aircraft filled with water and sank within 90 seconds. The pilot's wife was unable to vacate the aircraft before it sank, and was drowned.
The three survivors were rescued by a Royal Navy SAR helicopter from Lee-on-Solent: the two adults being taken to hospital at Ventor, Isle of Wight, and the child to a Naval Hospital at Haslar, Hampshire. All were suffering from shock and hypothermia
A contemporary local newspaper also published an account of the incident ("Aberdeen Press and Journal" - Monday 25 February 1985)
"Father’s vigil after plane crash
A FATHER was last night keeping a vigil at the bedside of his two year-old daughter who was seriously injured when his light aircraft crashed into the sea 300 yards off Sandown, Isle of Wight.
Her mother, Menna, was missing, believed drowned in the wreckage of the twin-engine Gulfstream plane.
Little Candice Buck from Farnham, Surrey, was plucked from the sea by a rescue helicopter after the plane had gone down in clear visibility.
Lt. lan Brown from Solent Air Rescue said that by the time they reached the scene of the crash the girl's father, Mr Dawson Buck, and another man had been rescued by a fishing boat.
He said: "The child was seriously injured and was flown to Haslar Naval Hospital at Gosport with a diver applying artificial respiration. The two men were put ashore at Ventnor and taken to the Royal Isle of Wight County Hospital at Ryde. Mr Buck was then flown to Gosport to be at the bedside of his daughter who is in the intensive care unit suffering from multiple Injuries".
Registration G-ECCO was belatedly cancelled by the CAA on 21.01.1987 as aircraft "destroyed"
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
1. Aberdeen Press and Journal - Monday 25 February 1985
2. Daily Mirror - Monday 25 February 1985
3. AAIB: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5422ff5ce5274a13140009ad/Gulfstream_American_GA-7_Cougar_G-ECCO_04-85.pdf
4. CAA: https://cwsprduksumbraco.blob.core.windows.net/g-info/HistoricalLedger/G-ECCO.pdf
5. https://abpic.co.uk/pictures/view/1324779/
6. http://wight.hampshireairfields.co.uk/iowc.html
7. https://sussexhistoryforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=17845.0
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 17-Nov-2014 00:23 | Dr. John Smith | Added |
| 14-Nov-2020 20:03 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Operator, Source, Narrative, Accident report] |
| 16-Nov-2020 19:22 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Source, Narrative] |
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