The Exhall mid-air collision happened on Saturday 19 February 1949 over the village of Exhall when a British European Airways Douglas DC-3 / Douglas Dakota collided in clear weather with a Royal Air Force Avro Anson T21.[1]
| Occurrence | |
|---|---|
| Date | 19 February 1949 |
| Summary | Mid-air collision |
| Site | Exhall, Warwickshire, United Kingdom 52°28′05″N 1°30′40″W / 52.468°N 1.511°W |
| Total fatalities | 14 |
| Total injuries | 0 |
| Total survivors | 0 |
| First aircraft | |
 A similar Douglas C-47A at Manchester Ringway Airport in 1949 | |
| Type | Douglas Dakota |
| Operator | British European Airways |
| Registration | G-AHCW |
| Flight origin | Northolt Airport, England, United Kingdom |
| Destination | Glasgow-Renfrew Airport, Scotland, United Kingdom |
| Passengers | 6 |
| Crew | 4 |
| Fatalities | 10 |
| Injuries | 0 |
| Survivors | 0 |
| Second aircraft | |
.jpg) An Avro Anson similar to the accident aircraft | |
| Type | Avro Anson T21 |
| Operator | Royal Air Force |
| Registration | VV243 |
| Flight origin | RAF Middleton St. George, United Kingdom |
| Destination | RAF Middleton St. George, United Kingdom |
| Passengers | 0 |
| Crew | 4 |
| Fatalities | 4 |
| Injuries | 0 |
| Survivors | 0 |
The Dakota was on a flight from Northolt Airport near London to Glasgow-Renfrew Airport in Scotland. With a crew of four it was carrying six passengers,[2] and had taken off from Northolt at 09:13.[3] The Royal Air Force Avro Anson T21 was being operated by No. 2 Air Navigation School on a cross-country training exercise from RAF Middleton St. George.[2]
The two aircraft collided at 4,500 feet (1,400 m) near the village of Exhall, near Coventry in Warwickshire.[1][2] The wreckage fell near an old peoples' home, the Exhall Lodge Hospital. There were no survivors.[2]
Although the weather at the time of the crash was clear,[4] the accident investigation concluded that the crew of neither aircraft saw each other, possibly due to glare from the sun, and blamed the accident on a failure on the part of both captains to keep a proper look-out for other aircraft.[3]
References
edit- ^ a b Accident description at the Aviation Safety Network
- ^ a b c d "14 Killed in Air Crash". News. The Times. No. 51311. London. 21 February 1949. col D, p. 2.
- ^ a b "Civil Aviation News:Dakota-Anson Collision". Flight (6 October 1949): 471–472.
- ^ "Civil Aviation News:Dakota-Anson Collision". Flight (24 February 1949): 231.