ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 2235
This information is added by users of ASN. Neither ASN nor the Flight Safety Foundation are responsible for the completeness or correctness of this information.
If you feel this information is incomplete or incorrect, you can submit corrected information.
| Date: | Tuesday 11 October 1938 |
| Time: | 08:30 LT |
| Type: | Hawker Audax Mk I |
| Owner/operator: | 10 FTS RAF |
| Registration: | K5149 |
| MSN: | |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 2 |
| Other fatalities: | 2 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Hells Mouth, near Pwlhlei, Caernarvonshire -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | RAF Penrhos, Caernavonshire |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources |
A pair of Hawker Audax Mk.Is (K5149 & K7396) of 10 FTS, RAF Ternhill, Shropshire were written off (destroyed) on 11/10/38 in a Midair collision over RAF Penrhos and crashed. Both aircraft were abandoned after mid air collision over Hells Mouth range, near Pwllheli, Caernarvonshire. According to the 10 FTS ORB:
"Accident to Audax K7396 and Audax K5149
1. Two aircraft of this squadron were carrying out double detail high bombing practice at approximately 0800 hours on 11/10/1938 over the ranges at Hell's Mouth, Penrhos. There was a moderate wind and visibility was good at 6,000 feet with 4/10 cloud at about 4,000 feet. Each aircraft was aware that the other aircraft was also bombing.
2. The two aircraft collided almost head on at a height of 6,000 feet and immediately dived to earth. Acting P/O R.A.D Meharey, the pilot of Audax K5149 jumped and landed safely by parachute. Acting P/O T.C.Dunn, the pilot of Audax K7396, also jumped but apparently his parachute caught in the tail plane and was torn to such an extent that it failed to break his fall. He broke his neck and was apparently killed instantly.
The two aircraft fell about a mile from the beach and about half a mile apart. Both aircraft were buried in the earth to a considerable depth and burst into flames on impact. They were completely destroyed. The remains of the two bomb aimers, Acting P/O J A Cooper and Acting P/O. R V Hart, have been recovered.
3. The findings of the court of inquiry were that the cause of the accident was due to an insufficient lookout being kept by the two pilots concerned. Acting P/O Dunn appears to have been somewhat out of position. Acting P/O Meharey who was concentrating on his view to the target failed to observe the other aircraft in time to avoid an accident.
The deceased officers were all buried with full military honours, as follows:
Acting P/O John Astley Cooper, Churchyard, Llaneneyan, (Pwllheli).
Acting P/O Thomas Campbell Dunn, Melrose, Roxborough, Scotland
Acting P/O Ronald Vincent Hart, St Phillip's Parish Churchyard, Pennifields, Wolverhampton.
Of the four crew (two in each aircraft) three were killed:
Acting Pilot Officer John Astley Cooper (aged 20) killed
Acting Pilot Officer Thomas Campbell Dunn (pilot of Audax K7396, aged 20) killed
Acting Pilot Officer Ronald Vincent Hart (aged 18) killed
Acting Pilot Officer Robert Andrew Desmond Meharey (pilot of Audax K5149 injured
According to a contemporary newspaper report ("Albany Advertiser (Western Australia) Thursday 13 Oct 1938 Page 1 see link #5):
"ASTLEY COOPER KILLED IN AIR FORCE ACCIDENT.
PROMISING CAREER ENDED.
LONDON, Oct. 11.
Three persons were killed when two R.A.F. bombers collided in the air today near Pwllheli, South Wales. One was Pilot Officer John Astley Cooper, son of the late G. A. Cooper and Mrs. L. L. Cooper, of Albany. He was educated at Albany and Hale School and entered the Commonwealth Bank. He went to England shortly before last Xmas and gained a R.A.F. cadetship and would only recently have been posted to a commission with a service squadron.
His brother, Lieut. Henry Cooper, is with the Roval Navy in the Mediterranean. Pilot Officer Cooper was aged 20. The funeral will take place tomorrow in England, and will be attended, by Lieut. Henry Cooper. At 7.30 o'clock tomorrow morning a special Requiem Communion will be held at St. John's, Albany, in memory of the late Astley Cooper."
Sources:
1. Royal Air Force Aircraft K1000-K9999 (James J. Halley, Air Britain 1976 page 40)
2. http://www.rcawsey.co.uk/Acc1939.htm
3. http://www.rafcommands.com/forum/showthread.php?11794-John-Astley-COOPER
4. https://www.british-genealogy.com/threads/86637-John-Astley-COOPER-not-honoured
5. Albany Advertiser (Western Australia) Thursday 13 Oct 1938 Page 1 at https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/70402566?searchTerm=John%20Astley%20COOPER&searchLimits=
6. https://www.flightglobal.com/pdfarchive/view/1938/1938%20-%202878.html
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 18-Feb-2008 06:00 | JINX | Added |
| 16-Mar-2018 22:35 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Time, Total occupants, Other fatalities, Location, Phase, Departure airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 16-Mar-2018 22:42 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Date] |
| 16-Mar-2018 22:42 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Narrative] |
| 19-Nov-2018 19:38 | Nepa | Updated [Operator, Operator] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
The Aviation Safety Network is an exclusive service provided by:
Quick Links:
| ASN Home | Send Correction / Feedback |
| FSF Home | Disclaimer | Copyright |
| Contact Us | Privacy Policy |
| Press / Media |
CONNECT WITH US:
©2024 Flight Safety Foundation