ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 111229
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 19 October 1943 |
| Time: | 08:05 |
| Type: |  North American AT-6D Texan |
| Owner/operator: | 430th SEFTS USAAF |
| Registration: | 42-44660 |
| MSN: | |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | one mile east of Benoit Field, Headland, Alabama -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
| Nature: | Training |
| Departure airport: | Napier Field, Dothan, Alabama |
In the morning of 19 October 1943 the AT-6D 42-44660 of 430th SEFTS, USAAF (Single-Engine Flying Training School) took off from Napier Field, Dothan, Alabama, for a training flight. Aboard were an instructor, 2Lt. Donald Albert Gantter, and a student, Air Cadet Lee McBride Morrow. They had been practicing aerobatic maneuvers for approximately 30 minutes when they crashed at 0805 hrs one mile east of Benoit Field, Headland, Alabama.
Another instructor who was in the area momentarily observed the aircraft at an approximate altitude of 600 feet. Its attitude indicated that it had entered a stall from a pratice forced landing from which it was unable to recover. The aircraft struck the ground at an angle of 70 degrees and flipped over to an inverted position before bursting into flames.
According to Mireles book on USAAF accidents, both were killed instantly, but according to an article published in the Syracuse Herald Journal on the 21st, Gattner survived the crash for one day. His parents and his fiancée left Syracuse when they received word of the accident, but were stopped by the Red Cross at Montgomery that informed them that he had died of his wounds in the late afternoon of the 20th at Finney Hospital, Thomasvile, Georgia. According to the same article, Gantter, “who attended Webster School and was graduated from North High School, was a crack pilot. He flew for two years at Syracuse Municipal Airport before enlisting in the Army Air Corps in March of 1942. He won his wings and commission as a second lieutenant at Napier Field in March of this year and was immediately assigned to the advanced training field as an instructor."
The USAAF personal database shows Lt Gantter’s date of death as 19 October 1943, so it is possible that the newspapers article had false or confuse data.
Sources:
"Fatal Army Air Forces Aviation Accidents in the United States, 1941-1945. Volume 2, July 1943-July 1944", by Anthony J. Mireles. ISBN 0-7864-2789-2, page 553
https://www.aviationarchaeology.com/listPages/airforce/asp/AF_Monthly_1943Oct_S.asp
https://fr.findagrave.com/memorial/80399537/donald-albert-gantter
https://fr.findagrave.com/memorial/64214371/lee-mcbride-morrow
http://www.usaafdata.com/?q=node/130419
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Headland,_Alabama
http://www.maplandia.com/united-states/alabama/henry-county/headland/
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 14-Oct-2022 13:32 | Laurent Rizzotti | Updated [Time, Operator, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Other fatalities, Location, Phase, Nature, Departure airport, Source, Narrative] |
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