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By: - 8th February 2016 at 13:02 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
I haven't found an identity, but Wikipedia "Lympne Airport" gives two other references, one to the Times:
On 4 June 1937,[107] a British Klemm Swallow made a pilot-less take-off from Lympne and flew for some 35 minutes before crashing into a tree.[108] Its resting place was 200 yd (180 m) from RAF Hawkinge.[107]
By: - 8th February 2016 at 13:10 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
And oddly a reference in "Le Petit Dauphiné" (that I don't need to translate for you!)
ANGLETERRE
Un avion décolle et vole pendant 35 minutes privé de pilote IL VIENT S'ECRASER
CONTRE UN ARBRE PRES DE FOLKESTONE
Londres, 5 juin. — Un avion de tourisme, le « British Klemm Swallbw »
s'est écrasé; sur un arbre, hier soir, à Hawkinge, près de foikestone.
Les témoins de l'accident se précipitè-rent au secours du pilote, mais quelle
ne fut pas leur stupeur lorsqu'ils constatèrent que l'avion était vide. L'aérodrome de Lympne 'ut prévenu
et on apprit que le petit monoplan s'était envolé tout seul. Un mécanicien avait mis l'hélice en mouvement sans prendre la précaution de placer des cales sur les deux roues; le frein se desserra et le « SwalloW » s'envola, s'éleva jusqu'à 300 mètres et survola les-villes de Hythe, Lympne et Folkestone. - .
,Et 35 minutes après son décollage, l'avion descendit et vint se briser contre
l'arbre qui devait mettre un terme 'à course aventureuse. Des aviateurs militaires qui avaient
vu l'avion survolant leur camp avalent admiré la marche régulière de'l'appareil
et s'étaient récriés sur l'habileté de son pilote qu'ils croyaient une « vieill
Sorry the copy peters out at this stage but you can find it at
http://www.memoireetactualite.org/presse/38PETITDAUPH/PDF/1937/38PETITDAUPH-19370606-P-0001.pdf
By: - 8th February 2016 at 13:14 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
I haven't found an identity, but Wikipedia "Lympne Airport" gives two other references, one to the Times:
On 4 June 1937,[107] a British Klemm Swallow made a pilot-less take-off from Lympne and flew for some 35 minutes before crashing into a tree.[108] Its resting place was 200 yd (180 m) from RAF Hawkinge.[107]
Just to add here the info of the Times article:
"Runaway Aeroplane. Pilotless Machine's 35-Minute Flight" The Times (London). Saturday, 5 June 1937. (47703), col F, p. 9.
and the text from the article in Flight, June 10, 1937
[ATTACH=CONFIG]243885[/ATTACH]
By: - 8th February 2016 at 13:59 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
Thank you, Laurence and Martin. I must assume that the story originated with an agency report and was syndicated throughout Europe.
If the Swallow was one of those operated by the Cinque Ports Flying Club, one must assume that it was one of G-ADSF, G-AEIH, G-AELI, G-AEVC, G-AEYV or G-AEYW. However all of these are recorded as surviving beyond 1937. So the mystery continues!
By: - 8th February 2016 at 14:14 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
Further to my theory above, if the Swallow was registered to the Cinque Ports Flying Club it was not G-ADSF, G-AELI or G-AEYW as all of these were registered to it after the reported accident date (although I suppose that it is possible that these aeroplanes were at Lympne and operated by the Cinque ports Flying Club prior to being registered to it). This leaves G-AEIH, G-AEVC and G-AEYV, which were registered to it on ? June 1936, 3 March 1937 and 4 June 1937 (!) respectively. However these aeroplanes survived to be impressed in March 1940, to be given to the ATC in 1943 and to be sold to a private owner at Wilmington in 1938 respectively.
By: - 8th February 2016 at 14:29 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
The Times article is actually detailed and quite lengthy, but it would appear the aircraft was probably damaged, not destroyed. The aircraft circled over Hawkinge watched by those on the ground and:
They were astonished to see it descend so low, for at one moment it almost struck the roof of the Officers' Mess. Just afterwards it struck a hedge and crashed in a field about 200 yards from the aerodrome.
Edit. Perhaps I should have added it was followed by another Lympne aircraft.
Brian
By: - 8th February 2016 at 14:49 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
Thank you, Brian. If so, that makes the task of identification of the aeroplane more difficult still!
As I read the various newspaper reports, it made me realise what a wonderful performance the Swallow could achieve. The one which interests me managed to take off from Lympne without a pilot to guide it; to fly for over half an hour without independent control or incident; and to get within a couple of hundred yards of making a landing on the aerodrome at Hawkinge. However as I read through the reports of the fates of other Swallows, it seems that its performance went downhill significantly when it had humans on board attempting to control it!
By: - 8th February 2016 at 16:05 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
AA
Contact me at monbryth AT aol DOT com and I'll send the newspaper report.
Brian
Edit. There might be a comment in either the Lympne ORB (AIR28/509) or Hawkinge ORB (AIR 28/345)
By: - 8th February 2016 at 17:22 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
Thank you. I've now done so.
By: - 8th February 2016 at 20:59 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
I'm beginning to wonder whether the lack of information about this incident may be because the aeroplane was not written off as a result of its 4 June 1937 crash but, instead, it was repaired and flown again. If so this incident may not have been recorded, whereas its ultimate fate, whatever that might have been, is what appears on the record. The other possibility is that, despite what is reported, the aeroplane was not owned and/or operated by the Cinque Ports Flying Club at the time of this incident. But as the records of the Cinque Ports Flying Club apparently no longer are extant, the answer to my question may remain an enigma.
By: - 8th February 2016 at 22:12 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
From Google Books
British civil aircraft, 1919-1972 - Volume 1 - Page 166
https://books.google.co.uk/book...
Aubrey Joseph Jackson, R. T. Jackson - 1987 - Snippet view - More editions
I The sole example of a Swallow 2 fitted with a coupe top was G-AEMW. ... One of these was the Cirrus-engined G-AEVC, which had survived a pilotless take-off from the Cinque Ports Flying Club, only to be destroyed when a tip-and-run raider bombed the ... SPECIFICATION Manufacturers: The British Klemm Aeroplane Co.
By: - 9th February 2016 at 07:54 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
Thank you, Paul. Now if only I'd looked at the text of Jackson, rather than just the appendix .....!
By: - 9th February 2016 at 07:59 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
I should have read it too, as I have it here!
By: - 13th February 2016 at 21:58 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
In the old guidebook for the Strathallan Collection it is claimed that their Swallow G-ADPS also carried out a similar "feat" by flying pilotless for one and a half hours, also from Lympne, but post-war. If that's correct then it too must've made a fairly decent "landing" as it is still flying today (last I heard anyway). Have never been able to find out any more information on this unfortunately.
By: - 13th February 2016 at 22:30 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
"ADPS" is now privately owned but you could try the current owner for log book info.
Incidentally if was a Swallow 2 it was by BA. I think BK only produced the "L25C Swallow", a different animal.
I have vague memory of seeing historical reports of this type of happening, they obviously made a habit of it!
By: - 14th February 2016 at 09:53 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
G-AEGM and G-AELV performed the same trick, but less successfully. The former did it at Hooton, the flight ending in a crash and its destruction by fire. The latter did it at Hanworth, but is recorded only as ending its flight by crashing.
By: - 14th February 2016 at 21:55 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
"ADPS" is now privately owned but you could try the current owner for log book info.
Incidentally if was a Swallow 2 it was by BA. I think BK only produced the "L25C Swallow", a different animal.
Thanks! That's certainly worth a try :)
It is indeed a BA Swallow 2.
By: - 14th February 2016 at 21:58 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
G-AEGM and G-AELV performed the same trick, but less successfully. The former did it at Hooton, the flight ending in a crash and its destruction by fire. The latter did it at Hanworth, but is recorded only as ending its flight by crashing.
So were the Swallows more prone to this sort of thing or did it happen with other types too?
By: - 14th February 2016 at 22:07 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
I suspect that the answer to the second question is in the affirmative. But it's a big question. Can you give me a few years to research it!
By: - 15th February 2016 at 12:05 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
Either because the pilot/prop swinger on an unchocked aircraft has forgotten to check that all mag switches are off or there is a fault with the magneto(s) or alternatively they have been dumb enough to attempt an engine start without chocks/tie down - an aircraft engine starting and then moving has certainly not been that unusual over the years.
The last in this country I actually remember was at The Long Mynd in 1993 when a pawnee engine started whilst the prop was being turned and the aircraft did a brief flight into the nearest gully - there will have been others since though.Doubly unfortunate with a glider tug since one can use the glider hook as a tie down point for engine starting.
The last time I actually witnessed an inadvertent engine start was at Abingdon 1981ish when we had the whole chipmunk fleet out for the first time after xmas and the aircraft next to mine had a mag fault - the pilot who was starting his walkround said to the groundcrew that he was clear to prime the engine and in spite of the mag switches being off and the throttle closed (the engine had not been started for at least 2 weeks) and in very cold weather - the engine actually started and continued running,cue open mouthed pilot at rudder and shocked looking prop swinger :D
But of course it was no drama because the aircraft was correctly chocked and was stopped on the fuel cut out.
One of course always treats the prop as 'live' (if sensible)
Posts: 5,937
By: avion ancien - 8th February 2016 at 10:41
The following report appeared in the Western Daily Press on Saturday 5 June 1937
PILOTLESS 'PLANE ESCAPES.
A pilotless runaway aeroplane last night banked and circled over the towns of Hythe, Lympne and Folkestone before ending its adventures by crashing into a tree at Hawkinge. It was a Klemm Swallow belonging to The Cinque Ports Flying Club and was being started outside the club hangar.
An engineer swung the propellor and when the engine started the throttle jammed. No-one was in the cockpit and the 'plane raced across the aerodrome, climbed into the south-west wind and reached a height of 200 feet. Astonished officials rushed out of their offices and saw the 'plane banking and turning over the aerodrome. Then it disappeared over the hills towards Dover. Police stations were hurriedly warned, and fire engines asked to stand-by. With ten gallons of petrol aboard the 'plane it was feared that serious damage might arise in the event of the inevitable crash.
After the machine had been in the air for 35 minutes a message was received at Lympne that the 'plane had crashed into a tree at Hawkinge and it was wrecked.
I've scrutinised closely the Appendix E entries in British Civil Aircraft 1919 - 1972 for both the Klemm L25 and the BK/BA Swallow but I've been unable to find any reference to any of the British registered aircraft being involved in such an incident on that date (although it records at least two other Swallows, G-AEGM and G-AELV, having crashed at Hooton and Hanworth following pilotless take-offs in 1936 and 1939 respectively). Nor can I find any chronologically exact or close reference on the internet. As the incident was reported in the newspaper, I must assume the incident date is correct (or, at least, not significantly incorrect). I suppose that there is the possibility that the aeroplane was not destroyed as a result of its crash landing, but was repaired and flew again, so that the 4 June 1937 incident was not its end and that this subsequently was differently recorded. So if anyone can identify the aeroplane involved in this reported incident, I shall be most grateful.