ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 69211
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| Date: | Sunday 14 January 1940 |
| Time: | |
| Type: | Fairey Gordon Mk I |
| Owner/operator: | 112 Sqn RAF |
| Registration: | K2719 |
| MSN: | |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 2 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | near RAF Helwan, about 10 miles east of Cairo -
 Egypt
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | RAF Helwan |
On 14 January 1940, the engine of the Fairey Gordon I K2719 of 112 Sqn RAF shortly after taking off for a drogue towing flight. According to one source, an exhaust duct was corroded and blew and shot a jet of flame onto the ignition harness and the engine cut out. The pilot, Sgt Charles John Wilson Tait, looked to land straight ahead and picked a level surface on a small island in the Nile near Helwan. It turned out to be a mud flat and the Gordon tipped over. Tait was unhurt while the drogue operator, LAC G R McLennan, 539503, RAF, broke his wrist. Another member of 112 Sqn, John Cleary, 542103, RAF, said to his son that he was a passenger in this plane when it crashed. He ended up down the fuselage towards the tail but crawled back and dropped down out of the cockpit. His presence is not recorded in official reports, he might have been there but not authorized to board the aircraft.
The aircraft was recovered with a dhow, but was struck of charge as it was considered to be beyond economic repair (meaning the cost of the repairs were above the value of the old aircraft).
This aircraft had been delivered to RAF on 10 August 1932 and arrived at Aboukir, Egypt on 22 December 1934, being allocated to Unit Abu Seir. In November 1939 it went to 112 Sqn for target tug duties.
Sources:
http://raf-112-squadron.org/planelosses.html
http://raf-112-squadron.org/raf_112_squadron_photos_1939.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairey_Gordon
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helwan
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=en&lat=29.850000&lon=31.333333&z=12
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 19-Oct-2009 00:43 | JINX | Added |
| 19-Jan-2012 14:57 | Nepa | Updated [Operator, Location, Departure airport, Source] |
| 18-Jul-2013 04:50 | JINX | Updated [Operator, Location, Departure airport, Source] |
| 13-Aug-2013 16:07 | Nepa | Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Location] |
| 14-Aug-2013 03:50 | JINX | Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Location] |
| 02-Feb-2015 16:32 | Don Diego | Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Location, Departure airport] |
| 30-Dec-2015 08:52 | JINX | Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Location] |
| 14-Jan-2016 09:02 | Laurent Rizzotti | Updated [Source, Narrative] |
| 19-Oct-2018 13:36 | Nepa | Updated [Operator, Operator] |
| 06-May-2023 16:57 | Nepa | Updated [[Operator, Operator]] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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