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| Date: | Wednesday 14 March 1928 |
| Time: | c. 02:00 LT |
| Type: | Stinson SM-1 Detroiter |
| Owner/operator: | Elsie Mackay |
| Registration: | NC4183 |
| MSN: | M223 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Off SW coast of County Cork -
 Atlantic Ocean
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | RAF Cranwell, Lincolnshire |
| Long Island, USA | |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources |
At about 8:45 a.m. on the 13th of March, 1928, a black-and-gold painted Stinson Detroiter named "Endeavour" took off from the airfield at the Royal Air Force College, Cranwell in England, bound for Long Island.
On board were two persons, both of them remarkable individuals. The pilot was Captain W.G.R. Hinchliffe, a decorated flying ace of the Great War. Blinded in the left eye by a wartime crash, Raymond Hinchliffe was flying the Stinson from the co-pilot's or right-hand seat as this gave him a better view from the cockpit.
His co-pilot was the third of the four daughters of Lord Inchcape, chairman of the P&O shipping empire and a banking magnate. Her name was Lady Elsie Mackay.
Vivacious and attractive, Elsie Mackay was an actress of the stage and silent movie screen, a skilled horsewoman, and a daring pilot. She was reputed to be one of the richest women in England.
The purpose of the flight was twofold ; to make the first air crossing of the Atlantic from east to west, and to establish Elsie Mackay as the first woman to fly the Atlantic.
The attempted flight was surrounded by secrecy as Lord Inchcape was firmly opposed to his daughter's adventure. Elsie told her father that she was not going on the flight and then took the place of the supposed co-pilot at the last minute .
The Stinson was sighted at about 1:30 p.m. from the lighthouse at Mizen Head on the SW coast of County Cork, flying over the village of Crookhaven and on the great circle course to Newfoundland.
A French steamer later reported seeing them still on course.
The plane never arrived in the USA, and the search for the aircraft and its crew was called off on March 19th.
In December 1928 an identifiable object from the plane, a part of the undercarriage, was found washed up on the shore in County Donegal, Ireland.
Sources:
1. The Airmen Who Would Not Die, by John G. Fuller, pub. G.P.Putnam's Sons, New York.
2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elsie_Mackay#Transatlantic_flight
3. http://ngb.chebucto.org/Newspaper-Obits/xxviii2.shtml
4. http://www.granthammatters.co.uk/mackay-elsie/
5. http://www.elsie-mackay.co.uk/
6. http://www.aerofiles.com/stinson-regs.html
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 07-May-2009 23:41 | angels one five | Added |
| 07-May-2009 23:49 | angels one five | Updated |
| 08-May-2009 12:39 | angels one five | Updated |
| 16-May-2009 07:43 | angels one five | Updated |
| 02-Jan-2011 16:36 | angels one five | Updated [Other fatalities, Source, Narrative, ] |
| 21-Sep-2011 04:25 | angels one five | Updated [Source, Narrative, ] |
| 14-Dec-2011 16:29 | angels one five | Updated [Source, Narrative, ] |
| 28-Dec-2011 01:59 | angels one five | Updated [Source, Narrative, ] |
| 29-May-2013 07:32 | angels one five | Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Location, Departure airport, Destination airport, Narrative, ] |
| 13-Dec-2013 01:09 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Time, Registration, Cn, Location, Country, Departure airport, Source, Narrative, ] |
| 24-Feb-2015 01:00 | angels one five | Updated [Narrative, ] |
| 27-Dec-2015 08:23 | Anon. | Updated [Date, Time, Location, Country, ] |
| 02-Apr-2017 15:51 | TB | Updated [Time, Aircraft type, Operator, Location, Narrative, ] |
| 02-Apr-2017 16:04 | TB | Updated [Registration, Narrative, ] |
| 20-Nov-2017 10:36 | angels one five | Updated [Location, Narrative, ] |
| 09-May-2022 04:33 | angels one five | Updated [Narrative, ] |
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