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Date: | Tuesday 23 August 1927 |
Time: | day |
Type: | Hawker Cygnet |
Owner/operator: | RAE Farnborough Aero Club |
Registration: | G-EBJH |
MSN: | 2 |
Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1 |
Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
Location: | Lympne Airport, Lympne, Kent -
United Kingdom
|
Phase: | Take off |
Nature: | Private |
Departure airport: | Lympne Airport, Lympne, Kent (EGMK) |
Destination airport: | |
Confidence Rating: | Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources |
Narrative:Hawker Cygnet; first registered (C of R 1235) on 8.7.1924 to H.G. Hawker Engineering Co Ltd, Kingston-upon-Thames (aircraft based at Brooklands). In 1924, the Royal Aero Club organized a Light Aircraft Competition. £3,000 was offered in prizes. An entry was made by Hawker Aircraft, which was a design by Sydney Camm, the Cygnet. Camm had joined Hawker the previous year. Two aircraft were built (G-EBMB and G-EBJH) and were entered in the competition, held in 1924 at Lympne Aerodrome, by T. O. M. Sopwith and Fred Sigrist. The aircraft were flown by Longton and Raynham and came in 4th and 3rd places respectively. There were the only Cygnets built, one with a 34hp Anzani engine (G-EBMB owned by the the RAF Museum, and the sole survivor) and one (G-EBJH) with a 34hp ABC Scorpion.
Re-registered 26.11.1926 to the Royal Aircraft Establishment Aero Club, Farnborough, Hampshire (C of R 1235).
Written off (damaged beyond repair) 23.8.1927 when Hit telegraph wires on take-off, Lympne Airport. Lympne, Kent. Pilot - Flight Lt Robert Linton Ragg - was unhurt. According to a contemporary newspaper report ("Western Daily Press" - Wednesday 24 August 1927)
"HUSH FLIGHT 'PLANE.
END OF A NON-STOP HOP.
Crash While Taking-off.
Flying Officer L. Ragg, piloting a Hawker Cygnet light biplane, crashed at Lympne Aerodrome, near Folkestone, early yesterday morning, when taking off on a secret non-stop flight to the Near East. The pilot had a remarkable escape, getting clear of the wrecked machine unhurt. An enormous quantity of petrol had been taken aboard the 'plane for the flight, this prevented the pilot from being able to climb quick enough to clear the telegraph wires at the edge the aerodrome. He crashed into these and then fell on the side of the road.
At last year's competitions at Lympne this machine won the second prize of £1,500. The pilot hoped to reach Bucharest (sic) in 15 hours.
Load too Heavy.
Flying-Officer Ragg was carrying sufficient petrol for a 15 hours' flight and confident of reaching Bucharest. The failure of the machine to clear the telegraph wires was due to the heavy load being carried, extra petrol tanks haying been fitted to fuel the plane for the long distance flight. There was not sufficient wind to enable the pilot to climb quicker.
The officer, who kept the attempt secret, had been waiting at Lympne for several weeks to get away. He originally intended flying to Tangier, but the wind was not favourable."
Registration G-EBJH cancelled by the Air Ministry 28.11.1927 due to "destruction or permanent withdrawl from use of aircraft"
Sources:
1. Western Daily Press - Wednesday 24 August 1927
2. Mason, Francis K. Hawker Aircraft since 1920. London:Putnam, 1991.ISBN 0 85177 839 9.
3.
http://www.rcawsey.co.uk/Accb1929.htm 4.
https://cwsprduksumbraco.blob.core.windows.net/g-info/HistoricalLedger/G-EBJH.pdf 5.
https://www.baesystems.com/en/heritage/hawker-cygnet 6.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawker_Cygnet 7.
http://sussexhistoryforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=15293.0 8.
http://ata.afleetingpeace.org/index.php/gallery/gallery/l/lympne-1926-g-ebjh-hawker-cygnet-0751-0069-4372 9.
http://www.airhistory.org.uk/gy/reg_G-E3.html Media:
Revision history:
Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
11-Feb-2019 19:41 |
Dr. John Smith |
Added |
28-Feb-2020 20:31 |
Dr. John Smith |
Updated [Cn, Source, Narrative] |
28-Feb-2020 20:37 |
Dr. John Smith |
Updated [Source] |