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| Date: | Friday 2 March 1956 |
| Time: | 14:20 |
| Type: |  Canadair Sabre VI (F-86F) |
| Owner/operator: | Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) |
| Registration: | 23483 |
| MSN: | 1273 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Other fatalities: | 3 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Kertzfeld, ca 16 mi S of Strasbourg -
 France
|
| Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | 4(F) Wing, RCAF Baden-Soellingen, Germany |
| 4(F) Wing, RCAF Baden-Soellingen, Germany |
In 1956, the RCAF 1 Air Division in Europe approved the establishment of a five plane Sabre aerobatic team named the Skylancers. The pilots were drawn from the three Sabre squadrons on the unit. By the end of February, the team had flown over 70 training missions.
On March 2, 1956, the morning weather was marginal and the team missed their first mission. In the afternoon, the weather had improved, but a ragged ceiling close to 3500 ft with one-and-a-half miles visibility was in the practice area. At 13:45, four of the aircraft took off and proceeded to the practice area south of Strasbourg, France. The solo pilot had not joined them.
During the practice flight, at approximately 14:20, the formation lead, F/O McLarty, initiated a full formation loop. It is not exactly sure what happened, but the four aircraft failed to complete the loop and crashed into the ground near Kertzfeld, France, still in formation. The four aircraft were destroyed and the four pilots were killed. The other three aircraft involved were 23439, 23445, and 23524.
The Skylancer’s leader, F/O Joseph Dale McLarty (25) was assigned to 414 (Fighter) Squadron.
Accounts from Canadian newspapers that the four aircraft collided or that one blew up causing the other three to crash are false and was, at the time, pure conjecture provided by an anonymous “official”.
Sources:
The Canadair Sabre; Larry Milberry (Pg 246, 365)
http://www.c-and-e-museum.org/marville/other/maother-38.html
https://www.silverhawkauthor.com/post/canadian-warplanes-6-canadair-cl-13-sabre-sky-lancers
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/96806553/joseph-'dale'-mclarty
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 13-Feb-2018 12:21 | TB | Added |
| 26-Mar-2018 07:26 | TB | Updated [Registration, Cn, Source, Narrative, ] |
| 26-Mar-2018 07:47 | TB | Updated [Departure airport, ] |
| 02-Jul-2022 15:22 | Ron Averes | Updated [Location, ] |
| 14-Mar-2025 07:09 | Cosmo | Updated [Time, Aircraft type, Location, Phase, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, ] |
| 22-May-2025 14:47 | TB | Updated [Aircraft type, Source, Narrative, ] |
| 22-May-2025 14:48 | TB | Updated [Location, ] |
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