ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 491
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| Date: | Friday 22 January 1960 |
| Time: | 14:50 LT |
| Type: |  Fokker S.11.2 |
| Owner/operator: | Trek-Air |
| Registration: | PH-SIK |
| MSN: | 6236 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | English Channel, South Goodwin Sands -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Belgium |
| England | |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources |
An accident which has been quite a bit of a mystery, firstly because the cause was never established. and secondly because there were doubts whether it was not a preconceived action to collect the insurance.
The pilot of PH-SIK was to flying to England, according to the statements of the owner, looking to go to view a Tiger Moth to replace the severely damaged PH-NIK. (Which had been damaged on January 1st 1960)
On the part of the flight over Belgium, no data is available, it was observed at 14.50 hours north of Calais on course to England. At 14:48. PH-SIK was seen by some of the crew of the Norwegian tanker "Sagona" in the area of the South Goodwin Sands
The plane was approaching the "Sagona" at a height of about seven feet it drew near the ship steeply and abruptly, after a right turn and crashed where it again turned back to the ship .
From the description of the engine noise, it could be concluded that the motor functioning normally. The plane made a second approach when it dropped to four to five meters and again and flew straight with a right turn alongside. Witnesses saw a dark item was thrown from the plane that floated in the water. Later this package was identified as the uninflated dinghy.
For the third time the plane approached low over the water, then drew back abruptly.When the plane, still in the riser stand, had reached a height of about 40 meters the engine stopped, and put the aircraft into a nosedive. It hit the water at an angle, of which the estimates vary from 60 to 80 degrees, at a distance of about 250 meters from the "Sagona".
On impact with the water, the wings broke off. The "Sagona" put an immediate rescue out and was on the spot within ten minutes. Besides the dinghy mentioned, part of a parachute harness, a seat cushion and a pair of gloves were found, but not the body of the pilot nor any other wreckage.
Although for the rest of the day, and the day after, rescuers were still looking for the pilot, but he was never found. The need for a landing at sea is not known: in the time the pilot used for the maneuvers he had to the coast easily visible
The research both technically and medically remains incomplete, with certainty that the cause of the accident may be never be known. The cause of the accident was, from the available data, not established. However, the maneuvers of the aircraft presented evidence which indicated the possibility that the pilot had to perform a landing at sea. However, the maneuver failed.
Although the attorney for the owner presented convincing evidence, there was no legal proof. On this basis, the owner of PH-SIK was acquitted on June 1, 1962 for lack of evidence.As already noted it was rumored that the accident was attempted insurance fraud .
Sources:
http://www.hdekker.info/Nieuwe%20map/1960.htm#PH-SIK
https://krantenbankzeeland.nl/issue/zda/1962-05-16/edition/0/page/5?query=zeeduin%20dishoek&sort=relevance
Het Vrije Volk, 30 mei 1961
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 21-Jan-2008 10:00 | ASN archive | Added |
| 29-May-2012 13:19 | harro | Updated [Operator, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Other fatalities, Phase, Nature, Source, Damage, Narrative] |
| 03-Sep-2013 18:13 | Dr.John Smith | Updated [Time, Location, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 03-Sep-2013 18:18 | Dr.John Smith | Updated [Narrative] |
| 14-Jul-2014 19:54 | TB | Updated [Time, Operator, Source] |
| 02-Aug-2020 07:09 | Anon. | Updated [Operator, Source] |
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