ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 27105
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| Date: | Thursday 6 May 1948 |
| Time: | 13:21 LT |
| Type: |  de Havilland DH.89 Dragon Rapide |
| Owner/operator: | Connellan Airways |
| Registration: | VH-BKM |
| MSN: | 6543 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 4 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Daly Waters, NT -
 Australia
|
| Phase: | Take off |
| Nature: | Ferry/positioning |
| Departure airport: | Daly Waters Northern Territory |
| Tennant Creek, Northern Territory | |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources |
C/no. 6543: Taken on charge as X7383 (under Contract No B.104592/40) at 18 MU RAF Dumfries 20.7.41. (2 x Gipsy Queen III engines #70083/70084) To 18 Group Comms Flight, Leuchars 24.8.41. To 5 MU RAF Kemble 18.12.44. Sold 31.3.48 to R.N.W. Miller of Connellan Airways. Registered as VH-BKM 10.2.48 to Edward J Connellan t/a Connellan Airways, Alice Springs. UK C of A 10039 issued 25.3.48; flown to Australia, departing Croydon 13.4.48.
Crashed 6.5.48 on takeoff and burnt out at Daly Waters, NT, after refuelling at Daly Waters, en route to Alice Springs, pilot Ted Hourigan taxied at 1.20pm for departure to Tennant Creek. On board were De Havillands ground engineer Jim Crombie and two passengers Miss Sheppey and Miss Foule. When airborne, both engines cut out at 150 feet and the pilot was attempting a forced landing in a clearing. At the last moment the port engine regained power, the pilot lost control and the aircraft crashed into the ground, was wrecked and burst into flames. All four occupants were injured while the aircraft was destroyed. Cause of accident attributed to water contamination of the fuel.
That evening an MMA Avro Anson aerial ambulance arrived at Daly Waters from Darwin, flown by Neville Bell with a doctor on board. The 4 occupants of the Rapide were flown to Darwin.
Eddie Connellan wrote in his book Failure of Triumph: "From our point of view the fault lay with the pilot for not carrying out the proper fuel tank draining procedures after refuelling, especially after refuelling from drums. Not only did the pilot fail to make the proper checks for water after refuelling, but he committed the most unpardonable sin in flying, by trying to turn back to the aerodrome on takeoff after engine failure. Had he carried on straight ahead he could have crash-landed in the short timber ahead of him without any risk to himself and his passengers and the aeroplane would have been repairable."
Damian Miller remarked: "He ran out of airspeed, altitude and experience at the same time."
Wreckage still dumped at Daly Waters in September 1948
Sources:
1. The Indian Express 7 May 1948, p6
2. https://www.ab-ix.co.uk/pdfs/dh89.pdf
3. http://www.goodall.com.au/australian-aviation/dh89/dh89.htm
4. http://web.archive.org/web/20150202210455/http://ansetthistory.info/page2.htm
5. https://www.baaa-acro.com/crash/crash-de-havilland-dh89-dragon-rapide-daly-waters
6. http://www.airhistory.org.uk/dh/p065.html
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 27-Sep-2008 01:00 | ASN archive | Added |
| 28-Dec-2011 12:06 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Cn, Location, Phase, Nature, Departure airport, Source, Damage, Narrative] |
| 10-Mar-2014 03:36 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Time, Total occupants, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 22-Dec-2018 19:43 | TB | Updated [Location, Departure airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 18-Feb-2019 00:27 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Source, Narrative] |
| 21-Feb-2019 12:39 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Location, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 07-Jun-2022 10:55 | Ron Averes | Updated [Location] |
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