ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 25254
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| Date: | Saturday 13 October 1928 |
| Time: | c. 17:10 LT |
| Type: |  de Havilland DH.60 Moth |
| Owner/operator: | Cinque Ports Flying Club Ltd |
| Registration: | G-EBSS |
| MSN: | 423 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Selby Farm, St Botolph's Bridge, West Hythe, near Lympne, Kent -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Lympne Aerodrome, Ashford, Kent (LYM/EGMK) |
c/no. 423: DH.60X [Cirrus II] Moth, registered G-EBSS [C of R 1434] 2.8.27 to William Whiteley Ltd, as nominee for its director, Vicomte Jacques de Sibour, Stag Lane, Edgware, Middlesex; named "Jeunesse". C of A 1189 issued 20.8.27.
Sold and delivered 15.7.28; re-registered [C of R 1718] 13.8.28 to Cinque Ports Flying Club Ltd, Lympne, Kent (as a replacement for DH.60 Moth G-EBWC which crashed 7.7.28 - see separate entry).
Written off (damaged beyond repair) when crashed at Selby Farm, St Botolph's Bridge, West Hythe, near Lympne, Kent, 13.10.28, when pilot Guy Skinner (of Cinque Ports Flying Club) was jerked out of the cockpit of G-EBSS during spin recovery, after losing control in a roll. According to a published source (see link #10)
"In the summer of 1928, fruit farmer Guy Skinner, from Boughton Monchelsea, joined the Cinque Ports Flying Club (CPFC) and learned to fly, gaining his ‘A’ licence. But on the fateful day, he had only been qualified for two weeks and was yet to pass his oral examination.
Guy was relatively inexperienced with only five- or six-hours solo flight time. His instructor Major Travers had recently experienced two below par loops with him and had lost a watch from his pocket when inverted, which pointed to his student’s rough aeroplane handling.
On October 13, 1928, Guy had been having some dual control tuition with Major Travers for about 15 minutes. Just after 5pm he took off again, this time solo, and headed towards nearby Botolph’s Bridge where he started to perform aerobatics.
First, he put the CPFC-owned De Havilland Moth G-EBSS into a loop, then another followed by a half roll, but he allowed the nose to drop. He then went into an unintended spin and tried to force the Moth out of its spin forcefully, which propelled him forward in the cockpit.
This tore the seat belt from the starboard mounting and from an inverted position he fell from the cockpit at around 850 feet. He hit the ground near Selby Farm, near Hythe, suffering multiple fractures and dying instantly. The plane’s wreckage fell about 30 yards away. It was about 5.15pm.
Hearing a crash, farmer Spencer Reeve ran towards where he could see the wreckage, but saw the body of Guy Skinner before he reached it. He could see the man was motionless, badly injured and already dead, so he continued to the wreckage, worried that there could be someone else on board.
The broken seat belt mounting was evident in the wreckage. The farmer sent a message by car to report what he had heard and seen, then CPFC personnel and emergency services drove to the scene.
The inquest was held on the Monday afternoon at the Botolph’s Bridge Inn, conducted by the Coroner R S Jones. John Smith, who knew the deceased, gave evidence of identification and a verdict of accidental death was recorded.
Guy Thornton Skinner was 29 years old and had been born in 1898 to Thornton and Elizabeth Skinner of White Lodge, Boughton Monchelsea, near Maidstone. He had been privately educated and had a lot of friends in Ashford, where he was often seen.
Guy was reportedly a heavily built man, which had contributed to the seat belt being broken in his last moments. The CPFC board of directors offered their sincere sympathy to his family and friends".
Sources:
1. Folkestone, Hythe, Sandgate & Cheriton Herald - Saturday 20 October 1928
2. https://cwsprduksumbraco.blob.core.windows.net/g-info/HistoricalLedger/G-EBSS.pdf
3. http://www.airhistory.org.uk/gy/reg_G-E3.html
4. https://www.baaa-acro.com/crash/crash-de-havilland-dh60x-moth-selby-farm
5. National Archives (PRO Kew) File AVIA 5/10/C129: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C6576597
6. https://ab-ix.co.uk/pdfs/dh60.pdf
7. https://www.afleetingpeace.org/index.php/page-great-bitain-registers-g-eb/g-eb-part-2?highlight=WyJnLWVic3MiXQ==
8. http://sussexhistoryforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=15422.0
9. http://www.rcawsey.co.uk/Acc1929.htm
10. https://www.inyourarea.co.uk/news/tales-from-lympne-skyfall-over-botolphs-bridge/
11. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Hythe#Botolph's_Bridge
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 27-Sep-2008 01:00 | ASN archive | Added |
| 10-Dec-2011 08:03 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Cn, Operator, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Other fatalities, Location, Phase, Nature, Departure airport, Source, Damage, Narrative] |
| 28-Dec-2011 02:21 | angels one five | Updated [Source, Damage] |
| 12-Dec-2013 22:10 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Departure airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 01-Sep-2017 22:00 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Time, Source, Narrative] |
| 20-Jun-2018 15:25 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Source, Narrative] |
| 20-Jun-2018 15:26 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Narrative] |
| 30-Jun-2018 09:18 | Sergey L. | Updated [Total fatalities] |
| 29-Feb-2020 00:18 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Source] |
| 19-Nov-2023 08:08 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Time, Departure airport, Source, Narrative, Category] |
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