Date:	Friday 26 January 2007
Time:	06:00 UTC
Type:	de Havilland DH.82A Tiger Moth
Owner/operator:	Alastair Smith t/a Tobago Air CC
Registration:	ZS-BXT
MSN:	84776
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 2
Aircraft damage:	Substantial
Category:	Accident
Location:	Private farm Strip, Oak Valley District near Grabouw, Western Cape -   South Africa
Phase:	Initial climb
Nature:	Private
Departure airport:	Oak Valley District near Grabouw (Western Cape)
Destination airport:	Oak Valley District near Grabouw (Western Cape)
Investigating agency:	CAA S.A.
Confidence Rating:	Accident investigation report completed and information captured

Narrative:
de Havilland DH.82A Tiger Moth MSN 84776; Built by Moris Motors, Cowley, Oxford. Taken on charge as T6402 17.7.41 and shipped direct to South Africa. Taken on charge by the SAAF as '2198'. Noted still on SAAF charge at census 31.10.45.

Sold off and civil registered as ZS-BXT 1.48. Re-registered (1954) to Dr H C Schoeman & C Louw, Cradock. Re-registered 9.55 to J H C Van Niekerk, Somerset East. Re-registered (1968) to P Wyness, Boksberg. Damaged by fire in store Van Lille Bros c.1973. Registration ZS-BXT cancelled 5.74 as Withdrawn FRom Use. Re-registered 7.11.89 to John Tainton, Plettenberg Bay; rebuilt 1989-94. Sold (2001) to Alastair Smith (of Tobago Air CC), Elgin.

Crashed into vineyard at a Private farm in the Oak Valley District near Grabouw, Western Cape after engine 27.1.07. According to the South African CAA report into the accident:

"The pilot, accompanied by a passenger, took off in calm wind conditions on a local private flight from a private farm in the Oak Valley District near Grabouw. According to the pilot, the engine ran roughly on one of the magnetos during the pre-takeoff checks, but after a while ran normally prior to the takeoff. However, shortly after takeoff, the engine failed without any warning. The pilot immediately put the aircraft into a nosedive and checked that fuel and magnetos were 'on'?, which they were. He executed a forced landing in an orchard. The aircraft mushed into several pear trees in a slightly nose-down attitude before coming to rest. Both occupants sustained injuries and were admitted to hospital.

The aircraft's left and right, upper and lower wings, nose section and lower fuselage were substantially damaged. The propeller separated from the engine. The aircraft had a valid Authority to Fly Certificate with the expiry date being 20 December 2007.The Annual Inspection had been certified on 20 December 2006 at a total of 1 807.0 airframe hours and the aircraft had flown a further 7.0 hours since then.

Probable Cause: Cylinder temperatures were too high, leading to excessive carbon build-up in the exhaust valve guides. This resulted in the No. 2 & 3 exhaust valves becoming stuck in the open position.

By 2.12.2019, all that remained of ZS-BXT was a bare rear fuselage frame, stored in the rafters at Springs Airfield (see link #7)

1. Royal Air Force Aircraft T1000-V9999 (James J Halley, Air Britain)
2. http://www.dehavilland.co.za/DH82A_Tiger_Moth_construction_numbers_and_histories.htm
3. CAA South Africa Report CA18/2/3/8247: http://www.caa.co.za/Accidents%20and%20Incidents%20Reports/8247.pdf
4. https://air-britain.com/pdfs/production-lists/DH82.pdf
5. http://www.airhistory.org.uk/dh/p847.html
6. Tiger Moth ZS-BXT at Baragwanath, South Africa (FASY) in 1975: https://abpic.co.uk/pictures/view/1516762
7. Tiger Moth ZS-BXT (rear fuselage frame only) at Springs (FASI), South Africa 2.12.2019: https://abpic.co.uk/pictures/view/1682963
8. https://vymaps.com/ZA/Oak-Valley-2028167933865482/
9. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grabouw

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
28-Jan-2022 17:34	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Time, Operator, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Other fatalities, Source, Narrative]
28-Jan-2022 17:45	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Time, Total occupants, Location, Phase, Nature, Source, Narrative, Category]