ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 203144
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| Date: | Thursday 31 October 1935 |
| Time: | day |
| Type: | Percival E.1 (P.6) Mew Gull |
| Owner/operator: | Percival Aircraft Co Ltd |
| Registration: | G-ACND |
| MSN: | E.20A |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Angoulême, Charente department, Nouvelle-Aquitaine region -
 France
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Cannes, France |
| Deauville, France | |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources |
Prototype Percival Mew Gull first of six built; first flown March 1934 as in "Class B" markings as "E.1". First registered (C of R 4758) on 18.7.35 as G-ACND to Percival Aircraft Co. Ltd., London SW.1 (aircraft based at Gravesend Airport, Gravesend, Kent). The original Percival Model E.1 (P.6) Mew Gull prototype was redesigned following an accident into the much-refined E2 configuration, with much of the design work completed by Arthur Bage.
In July 1935, with a 180 hp French Régnier installed, G-ACND competed in the Coupe Armand Esders, a race of 1,046 miles from Deauville, France to Cannes and back. The Mew Gull was flown by Count de Chateaubrun, the Percival representative in France, and averaged 188 mph in the race. Immediately after, the original British de Havilland Gipsy Six was reinstalled.
Written off (damaged beyond repair) 31.10.35: The prototype Mew Gull, designated Type E.1 was fitted with a Napier Javelin engine, and first flew in March 1934. On 31.10.35, G-ACND was destroyed in a crash near Angoulême, Charente department, in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of South-western France, during the Coupe Michelin. Guy de Chateaubrun subsequently became the only pilot to bail out of a Mew Gull, abandoning G-ACND because of fog.
Registration G-ACND cancelled by the Air Ministry 2.12.35 due to "destruction or permanent withdrawl form use of aircraft".
NOTE: To confuse matters, the Type E.2 New Gull, powered by a 200 hp Gipsy Six, carried the same registration as its predecessor, but was almost a complete re-design, with very little of the surviving parts of the original aircraft used. G-ACND was temporarily fitted with a smaller 180 hp Regnier engine to qualify for the Coupe Armand Esders of 1935. With the Gipsy Six reinstated, the aircraft flew in a number of later races and won the Folkestone Trophy Race.
According to some sources G-ACND ("the second" - the substantial rebuild of the original) was withdrawn from use 4.9.39 (when all private civilian flying was prohibited due to the outbreak of war) and stored at Percival Aircraft's Luton factory. Having survived WWII, it was taken out of storage and burnt at Luton Airport, Luton, Bedfordshire on 7.7.45
Sources:
1. http://afleetingpeace.org/index.php/15-aeroplanes/77-register-gb-g-ac
2. https://publicapps.caa.co.uk/docs/HistoricalMaterial/G-ACND.pdf
3. http://www.airhistory.org.uk/gy/reg_G-A5.html
4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Percival_Mew_Gull#G-ACND_2
5. https://www.baesystems.com/en/heritage/percival-mew-gull
6. The Flight of the Mew Gull By Alex Henshaw
7. http://1000aircraftphotos.com/Contributions/DentonNeville/7984.htm
8. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michelin_Cup#1935
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 20-Dec-2017 02:17 | Dr. John Smith | Added |
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