Tag Archives: Aircraft Accident

24 June 1994, 14:16 PDT (21:16 UTC)

Aviation, , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Boeing B-52H-170-BW Stratofortress 61-0026, CZAR FIVE TWO, 2:16 p.m. PDT, 24 June 1994. (U.S. Air Force 120101-F-RL411-019)

24 June 1994: At Fairchild Air Force Base, southwest of Spokane, Washington, a Boeing B-52H-170-BW Stratofortress, serial number 61-0026, call sign Czar Five Two, was being flown by Lieutenant Colonel Arthur Alan (“Bud”) Holland, the aircraft commander, with Lieutenant Colonel Mark C. McGeehan, commanding officer of the 325th Bomb Squadron, as the co-pilot. The vice commanding officer of the 92nd Bomb Wing, Colonel Robert E. Wolff, was aboard as the designated safety observer. The fourth crew member, Lieutenant Colonel Kenneth S. Huston, the 325th squadron operations officer, was the radar navigator.

The mission was a practice flight for an upcoming air show demonstration. During the 18 minute flight, virtually every maneuver performed by Lieutenant Colonel Holland exceeded the operating limitations of the B-52, and violated Air Force and Federal Aviation Administration regulations.¹

Bud Holland was notorious for his reckless flying. Many crew members had asked not to be assigned to fly with him. Many prior instances of dangerous flying had occurred. Officers in Holland’s chain of command were aware of these violations, but seemed to tolerate them. Only Lieutenant Colonel McGeehan had tried to have Holland grounded, but he was overruled.

Lieutenant Colonel Bud Holland makes a very low pass with a B-52 Stratofortress at the Yakima bombing range. (U.S. Air Force)
Lieutenant Colonel Bud Holland makes a very low, high-speed pass with a B-52 Stratofortress at the Yakima bombing range. (U.S. Air Force)

Apparently, Holland thought that he was such a great pilot that he could make the B-52 do anything.

While approaching the runway for a touch-and-go, the control tower instructed Czar 52 to go around because of another aircraft that had just landed and was still on the runway. Holland requested to make a left 360° turn around the tower, which was approved.

At an altitude of just 250 feet (76 meters)—the B-52’s wingspan is 185 feet—Holland put the bomber into a nearly 90° left bank. As he approached the 270° point of the turn, Czar 52‘s wings went beyond the 90° point. Holland added power, but no amount of power could keep the B-52 in the air, now. The bomber simply fell out of the sky, impacting the ground with a 95° angle of bank and 150 knots (278 kilometers per hour) indicated air speed. Lieutenant Colonel McGeehan fired his ejection seat, but did not escape before impact. All four officers were killed.

The following You Tube video shows the actual crash of Czar 52. Other videos available on the internet show the entire air show practice, as well as previous examples of Holland’s dangerous flying.

The crash of Czar Five Two is an example of Command Failure. Everyone in the chain of command knew that Bud Holland was a dangerous pilot, but no one, with the exception of Lieutenant Colonel McGeehan, tried to stop him.

61-0026 was one of the last B-52 bombers built by Boeing before production ended in 1962. It was accepted by the U.S. Air Force on 2 June 1962.

The B-52H is a sub-sonic, swept wing, long-range strategic bomber. It was originally operated by a crew of six: two pilots, a navigator and a radar navigator, an electronic warfare officer, and a gunner. (The gunner was eliminated after 1991). The airplane is 159 feet, 4 inches (48.565 meters) long, with a wing span of 185 feet (56.388 meters). It is 40 feet, 8 inches (12.395 meters) high to the top of the vertical fin. The B-52H uses the vertical fin developed for the B-52G, which is 22 feet, 11 inches (6.985 meters) tall. This is 7 feet, 8 inches (2.337 meters) shorter than the fin on the XB-52–B-52F aircraft, but the fin’s chord is longer.

The wings of the B-52H have a total area of 4,000 square feet (371.6 square meters). The leading edges are swept aft to 36° 58′. The angle of incidence is 6°, and there is 2° 30′ dihedral. (The wings are very flexible and exhibit pronounced anhedral when on the ground.) To limit twisting in flight, the B-52H has spoilers on top of the wings rather than ailerons at the trailing edges.

The bomber has an empty weight of 172,740 pounds (78,354 kilograms) and its Maximum Takeoff Weight (MTOW) is 488,000 pounds (221,353 kilograms).

Boeing B-52H-170-BW Stratofortress 61-0026, circa 1978. The bomber is painted in the “SIOP” camouflage scheme.

The most significant difference between the B-52H and the earlier Stratofortresses is the replacement of the eight Pratt & Whitney J57-series turbojet engines with eight Pratt & Whitney Turbo Wasp JT3D-2 (TF33-P-3) turbofans, which are significantly more efficient. They are quieter and don’t emit the dark smoke trails of the turbojets.

The TF-33 is a two-spool axial-flow turbofan engine with 2 fan stages, a 14-stage compressor section (7-stage intermediate pressure, 7-stage high-pressure) and and a 4-stage turbine (1-stage high-pressure, 3-stage low-pressure). The TF33-P-3 has a maximum continuous power rating of 14,500 pounds of thrust (64.499 kilonewtons) at 9,750 r.p.m., N1. Military Power, limited to 30 minutes, is 16,500 pounds (73.396 kilonewtons) at 10,000 r.p.m., N1. Each engine produces a maximum of 17,000 pounds of thrust (75.620 kilonewtons) at 10,050 r.p.m., N1, with a 5-minute limit. The TF33-P-3 is 11 feet, 4.32 inches (3.4625 meters) long, 4 feet, 4.93 inches (1.3442 meters) in diameter and weighs 3,900 pounds (1,769 kilograms).

The B-52H has a cruise speed of 456 knots (525 miles per hour/845 kilometers per hour). It has a maximum speed, with Military Power, of 555 knots (639 miles per hour/1,028 kilometers per hour) at 20,700 feet (6,309 meters)—0.906 Mach. The service ceiling is 46,900 feet (14,295 meters). The unrefueled range is 8,000 miles (12,875 kilometers). With inflight refueling, its range is limited only by the endurance of its crew.

The B-52H was armed with a 20mm M61A1 Vulcan six-barreled rotary cannon in a remotely-operated tail turret. The gun had a rate of fire of 4,000 rounds per minute, and had a magazine capacity of 1,242 rounds. After 1991, the gun and its radar system were removed from the bomber fleet. The flight crew was reduced to five.

The B-52H can carry a wide variety of conventional free-fall or guided bombs, land-attack or anti-ship cruise missiles, and thermonuclear bombs or cruise missiles. These can be carried both in the internal bomb bay or on underwing pylons. The bomb load is approximately 70,000 pounds (31,751 kilograms).

At the time of the crash, 61-0026 had a total of 12,721.5 hours on its airframe. It was the only B-52 remaining at Fairchild AFB and had been meticulously maintained and inspected. There were no discrepancies related to the accident. It was valued at $73,700,000.

Boeing B-52H-170-BW Stratofortress 61-0026. (U.S. Air Force)
Boeing B-52H-170-BW Stratofortress 61-0026. (U.S. Air Force)

Arthur Alan (“Bud”) Holland was born 7 September 1947, in Suffolk, Virginia. He was the son of Arthur Leroy and Virginia Holland.

Holland attended Campbell University, Bules Creek, North Carolina, where he was a cadet in Reserve Officers Training Corps. He received a commission as a second lieutenant, United States Air Force Reserve in January 1971.

Holland and his wife, Sarah Anne, had two daughters, Heather Lee and Mary Margaret.

At the time of his death, Holland had served in the U.S. Air Force for over 23 years. He was a rated Command Pilot with a total of 5,275.3 flying hours, with 5,038.3 hours in the B-52 series (61.1 hours combat, B-52G).

Holland’s remains were interred at Fairmont Memorial Park, Spokane, Washington.

¹ In the official U.S. Air Force Aircraft Accident Investigation Board report (AFR 110-14), the list of regulations and technical orders violated by Lieutenant Colonel Holland on this 18 minute flight takes up three full pages (Page 23, 24, and 25).

© 2018, Bryan R. Swopes

23 June 1951

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Grumman F9F-5 Panther Bu. No. 125228 explodes after striking the flight deck of USS Midway (CVB-41), 23 June 1951. (U.S. Navy)

23 June 1951: Operating in the Atlantic Ocean off the Virginia Capes, the United States Navy aircraft carrier USS Midway (CVB-41) was conducting suitability trials of the Grumman F9F-5 Panther. Commander George Chamberlain Duncan, commanding Fighter Squadron 51 (VF-51), was in the cockpit of Bu. No. 125228. Having made a successful landing aboard Midway, Duncan took off to make another approach and landing.

Just short of the flight deck, the Panther dropped below the correct approach. Duncan tried to pull up, but the fighter struck the ramp and broke in half. The aircraft exploded in flames. The forward section slid down the deck. Duncan, though burned, was quickly rescued.

The nose section of Grumman F9F-5 Panther Bu. No. 125228 slides down the flight deck of USS Midway (CVB-41), 23 June 1951. Commander Duncan is still in the cockpit. (U.S. Navy)
Flight deck crew members try to contain the fire after the crash of F9F-5 Panther Bu. No. 125228, while others rescue Commander Duncan from the forward fuselage, aboard USS Midway (CVB-41), 23 June 1951. (U.S. Navy)
The forward fuselage of Grumman F9F-5 Panther Bu. No. 125228 following the crash aboard USS Midway (CVB-41), 23 June 1951. (U.S. Navy)

The Grumman F9F-5 Panther was a single-seat, single-engine turbojet powered fighter designed for operation from the U.S. Navy’s aircraft carriers. It was 38 feet, 10½ inches (11.849 meters) long, with a wingspan of 38 feet, 0 inches (11.528 meters)— not including wing tanks. Its overall height was 12 feet, 4 inches (3.759 meters). The wings could be hydraulically folded to reduce the span for storage aboard ship. The F9F-5 weighed 10,147 pounds (4,603 kilograms) empty, and had a gross weight of 17,766 pounds (8,059 kilograms). The maximum takeoff weight (MTOW) was 18,721 pounds (8,492 kilograms).

The F9F-5 was powered by a Pratt & Whitney JT7 (J48-P-6 or -6A) engine, a license-built version of the Rolls-Royce Tay. It was a single-shaft turbojet with a single-stage centrifugal-flow compressor, 9 combustion chambers and a single-stage axial-flow turbine. The J48-P-6 was rated at 6,250 pounds of thrust (27.80 kilonewtons), and 7,000 pounds (31.14 kilonewtons) with water injection.

The  F9F-5 Panther had a cruise speed 481 miles per hour (774 kilometers per hour). Its maximum speed was 604 miles per hour (972 kilometers per hour) at Sea Level. Its service ceiling was 42,800 feet (13,045 meters), and the range was 1,300 miles (2,092 kilometers).

The Panther was armed with four M3 20 mm autocannon placed in the nose. It could carry up to 3,465 pounds (1,361 kilograms) of bombs or eight 5-inch (12.7 centimeters) rockets on four hardpoints under each wing.

The XF9F-2 prototype first flew 21 November 1947. 1,382 F9F Panthers were produced and they remained in service with the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps until 1958. 619 of these were the F9F-5 variant. A swept wing version, the F9F-6 through F9F-9J Cougar, was also produced.

Captain George Chamberlain Duncan, United States Navy

George Chamberlain Duncan was born at Tacoma, Washington, 11 Feb 1917. He was the first of three children of of George W. Duncan, a mining camp supplier, and Frances Delarsh Chamberlain Duncan. Duncan attended Stadium High School in Tacoma. He played on the football and swim teams. He was also a member of the glee club, and during his senior year, portrayed “Oliver le Dain” in the comic opera, “The Vagabond King.” He was a member of the school’s glider and architecture clubs. Duncan graduated in 1934.

Midshipman George C. Duncan, U.S. Navy

George Duncan entered the United States Naval Academy, Annapolis, Maryland, as a midshipman, 18 July 1935. He graduated 1 June 1939 and was commissioned an Ensign, United States Navy. Ensign Duncan served aboard the Colorado-class battleship USS West Virginia (BB-48) from June 1939 to August 1941.

Ensign Duncan married Miss Agnes Wirt Tawresey at Washington, D.C., 30 August 1941. They would have four children, three sons, George, Jr., Richmond, Alfred, and a daughter, Agnes.

Ensign Duncan was next assigned to the Northampton-class heavy cruiser USS Louisville (CA-28), serving aboard in 1942 and 1943.

Duncan was promoted to the rank of lieutenant (junior grade), 1 June 1942. Two weeks later, 15 June 1942, he was promoted to lieutenant (temporary).

Lieutenant Duncan underwent flight training at NAS Pensacola. Following graduation he was assigned to Fighting Squadron Fifteen (VF-15) aboard USS Essex (CV-9). Duncan was promoted to lieutenant commander (temporary) 15 March 1944.

On 13 September 1944, Lieutenant Commander Duncan was engaged in aerial combat over the central Philippine Islands. He was credited with destroying an enemy medium bomber and two fighters, shared credit for a second bomber shot down, and damaged a third fighter. He followed this by strafing an airfield and destroying three aircraft on the ground. For these actions, Duncan was awarded the Silver Star.

During the Battle off Cape Engaño on the morning of 25 October 1944, Lieutenant Commander Duncan led VF-15 in an attack against Imperial Japanese Navy warships in the Sibuyan Sea. He scored a direct hit with a bomb on the light carrier IJN Chitose, which, along with a number of other hits, resulted in its sinking at 0937 hours. Duncan was awarded the Navy Cross.

Japanese aircraft carriers IJN Zuikaku (left) and IJN Zuiho under attack by U.S. Navy aircraft during the Battle off Cape Engaño, 25 October 1944. (U.S. Navy)

Duncan is officially credited with 13½ enemy aircraft destroyed.

In March 1945, Lieutenant Commander Duncan was assigned to the Naval Postgraduate School at Annapolis, Maryland. In 1949, he graduated from the 48-week Test Pilot Division course at NATC Patuxent River. On 1 June 1949, his rank of lieutenant commander became permanent. On the same day, Duncan was promoted to commander. This was also a permanent rank.

Commander Duncan served as the commander of VF-51 aboard the Essex-class aircraft carrier USS Valley Forge (CVA-45) during the Korean War. He later commanded  VF-101, and was Commander Air Group (“CAG”), Carrier Air Group 5 (CVG-5). He was next assigned as the Head, Fighter Design Branch, Bureau of Aeronautics (BuAir), then, Assistant Director, Aircraft Division, Bureau of Weapons (BuWeps). Returning to sea, Commander Duncan was executive officer of the “supercarrier” USS Forrestal (CV-59). Duncan was promoted to the rank of captain, 1 April 1958.

For a Naval Aviator to be given command of a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier, they generally have to have had command of a “deep-draft” ship. Captain Duncan was given command of the 13,900-ton aircraft stores ship USS Jupiter (AVS-8) from July 1961 to 24 March 1962. Jupiter had a draft of 25 feet, 10 inches (7.874 meters). During this time, Jupiter operated with the 7th Fleet, and was homeported at Yokosuka, Japan.

Captain Duncan assumed command of the Forrestal-class aircraft carrier USS Ranger (CV-61), 7 May 1962, and remained in that assignment until 20 May 1963.

USS Ranger (CVA-61), 1963. United States Navy)

Captain Duncan retired from the United States Navy in December 1967. During his naval career, he had been awarded the Navy Cross, the Silver Star, the Legion of Merit, the Distinguished Flying Cross with one silver star and one gold star (seven awards), and the Bronze Star with Combat “V.”

Following his retirement, Duncan attended George Washington University, Washington, D.C., where he earned a degree in law. He was a practicing attorney in Alexandria, Virginia.

Agnes Duncan died in 1972. In 1974, Captain Duncan married Margaret Handy. She died in 1980.

Captain Duncan suffered a fatal heart attack while in a restaurant in Alexandria, Virginia, 15 December 1995, at the age of 77 years. He is buried at the Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia, alongside his first wife.

© 2017, Bryan R. Swopes

23 June 1913

Aviation, , , , , , ,
Igor Ivanovich Sikorsky, 1914. (Karl Karlovich Bulla)
Igor Ivanovich Sikorsky, 1914. (Karl Karlovich Bulla)

23 June 1913: While parked at St. Petersberg, Igor Ivanovich Sikorsky’s S-21, Русский Витязь (Russky Vityaz or “Russian Knight”), the world’s first four-engine airplane, and, at the time, the world’s largest airplane, was crushed by an engine that had fallen off of a single-engine Morane-Saulnier airplane that was flying overhead.

Russky Vityaz, the Sikorsky S-21. (Bain News Service/Library of Congress LC-B2-3222-11)

Igor Sikorsky began work on the S-21 in 1911, while chief engineer for Russko-Baltiisky Vagonny Zavod at St. Petersburg, and it first flew 10 May 1913. It was a four-engine biplane operated by a crew of three and could carry up to seven passengers in two enclosed cabins. These cabins were large enough that the passengers could stand and move  around.

The S-21 was 20 meters (65.6 feet) long. The upper wing had a span of 27 meters (88.6 feet) and the lower wing, 20 meters (65.6 feet). Overall height of the airplane was 4 meters (13.1 feet). Its empty weight was 3,400 kilograms (7,496 pounds) and the gross weight was 4,000 kilograms (8,818 pounds).

Ígor’ Ivánovič Sikórskij; with His Imperial Majesty Tsearevich Nikoláj II Aleksándrovič Románov aboard the S-21. (San Diego Air & Space Museum Archives, Catalog #: 12_00087512)

Russky Vityaz was powered by four water-cooled Argus Motoren G.m.b.H. As 1 inline four-cylinder engines in a tractor configuration. These produced 100 horsepower, each, and turned two-bladed fixed-pitch propellers. The biplane had a maximum speed of 90 kilometers per hour (56 miles per hour), service ceiling of just 600 meters (1,969 feet) and range of 170 kilometers (106 miles).

Rather than try to repair the wrecked S-21, Sikorsky decided to build something even bigger: the Sikorsky S-22 Ilya Muromets.

Российская Империя. Авиаконструктор Игорь Сикорский сажает свой четырехмоторный самолет “Илья Муромец” на Корпусном аэродроме в Санкт-Петербурге. /Репродукция Фотохроники ТАСС/

Igor Sikorsky emigrated to the United States of America in 1919, where he designed and built large seaplanes for airline use before focusing on the development of the helicopter, beginning with the Vought-Sikorsky VS-300. His company remains in operation today and produces some of the most widely used military and commercial helicopters.

Igor Sikorsky's S-21, Russky Vityaz, four-engine airplane, 1913. (RIA Novosti)
Igor Sikorsky’s S-21 four-engine airplane, Russky Vitaz 1913. (RIA Novosti)

© 2020, Bryan R. Swopes

22 June 1931

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Ruth Rowland Nichols with “Akita,” the Crosley Radio Corporation’s Lockheed Model 5 Vega Special, NR496M. Note the Detroit Aircraft Corporation/Lockheed Aircraft Company logo on the tail fin. Thanks to Tim Bradley Imaging (https://timbradleyimaging.com) for the digital restoration of this photograph. (NASM-NAM-A-45905-A)

22 June 1931: In the late 1920s through mid-1930s, Miss Ruth Rowland Nichols was one of the best-known American women in aviation. She was the only person to have simultaneously held world records for speed, distance and altitude.

Miss Nichols planned to become the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean. On the afternoon of 22 June 1931, she took off from Mitchel Field, Long Island, New York, to stage for the transatlantic flight at Harbor Grace, Dominion of Newfoundland, making an intermediate stop at Saint John, New Brunswick, Dominion of Canada.

Nichols was flying a Lockheed Model 5 Vega, owned by Powell Crosley, Jr., founder of the Crosley Radio Corporation, a manufacturer of radio equipment and owner of a broadcast network based in Cincinnati, Ohio. He had named the airplane The New Cincinnati. Miss Nichols called it Akita.

While landing at the Saint John airport in Millidgeville, her plans went awry. . .

Nichols’ crash near St. John, New Brunswick, 22 June 1931. Everyone in the photo is looking at the camera. 🙂

Miss Nichols wrote about it in Wings For Life:

   As I peered down at a tiny airport set like a bowl in the midst of surrounding wooded hills and cliffs, I thought at first I must be off course—this couldn’t be the St. Johns field. . .

     Twice I circled, studying the small, rock-enclosed field from every angle. How on earth could the heavy, fast Lockheed land there? Those crossed runways would be safe only for small or lightly-loaded planes. . .

     Because of the wind direction, I would have to use the shorter of the two runways—and even the longer one was inadequate. I flew back over the town, then headed back toward the airport while cutting the throttle to minimum flying speed.

     I slid in over the trees and edged through a narrow ravine. So far, so good. Maybe my luck was holding. Dead ahead was the runway. I made an S turn for the proper approach and headed straight into the blinding rays of the sun. I couldn’t look ahead to gauge the length of the runway, because ahead was a fiery glare. Only by staring down through the cockpit window could I see even the edge of the runway. . .

     Suddenly the dazzling blaze of the sun was doused by the shadow of a cliff and I saw to my horror that I had passed the intersection and still had flying speed. . .

     . . . then came a splintering crack as the tail broke through the treetops. More rocks ahead—a deafening shuddering C-R-A-S-H—then paralyzing silence. From seventy miles an hour minimum climbing speed with a load the motor impacted to a dead stop. The whole back end of the ship must be coming over on top of me, relentlessly bearing down, pushing my head and shoulders down between my knees.

     Splintering pain, and the silence of catastrophe.

—Wings for Life, by Ruth Nichols, J.B. Lippincott, Philadephia, 1957

Nichols’ Lockheed Vega crashed at St. John, New Brunswick, 22 June 1931.

Ruth Nichols suffered five fractured vertebrae and would spend months recovering. The airplane would be repaired. This was not the first time the Vega had been damaged, nor would it be the last.

A contemporary newspaper reported the accident:

. . . She had left New York at 3:22 P.M. and it was just 3 hours and 48 minutes later that she cracked up, at 7:10 P.M., New York time.

     A great crowd had gathered at the St. John airport to see her land. She had announced her intention of spending the night there and proceeding to Harbor Grace, N. F., tomorrow.

Blinded by Sun.

     Her plane hove into sight and took a long graceful slant downward to alight. Then, as she straightened out to land, the sun shone full into her eyes. For just one second she was blinded and in that second overshot the runway and nosed over.

     Mechanics at the field awaited the arrival of Col. Clarence Chamberlin, Miss Nichols’ technical adviser, to decide what could be done for the plane.

—Daily News, Vol. 12, No. 310, Tuesday, 23 June 1931, at Page 13, Column 1

Miss Nichols did not make the solo transatlantic flight. That would take place the following Spring. The pilot would be Miss Amelia Mary Earhart.

Ruth Rowland Nichols

Nichols’ airplane was a 1928 Lockheed Model 5 Vega Special, serial number 619, registered NR496M, and owned by Powell Crosley, Jr.

Built by the Lockheed Aircraft Company, Burbank, California, the Vega was a single-engine high-wing monoplane with fixed landing gear. It was flown by a single pilot in an open cockpit and could be configured to carry four to six passengers.

The Lockheed Vega was a very state-of-the-art aircraft for its time. The prototype flew for the first time 4 July 1927 at Mines Field, Los Angeles, California. It used a streamlined monocoque fuselage made of molded plywood. The wing and tail surfaces were fully cantilevered, requiring no bracing wires or struts to support them.

The Model 5 Vega is 27 feet, 6 inches (8.382 meters) long with a wingspan of 41 feet (12.497 meters) and overall height of 8 feet, 2 inches (2.489 meters). Its empty weight is 2,595 pounds (1,177 kilograms) and gross weight is 4,500 pounds (2,041 kilograms).

Nichols’ airplane was powered by an air-cooled, supercharged 1,343.804-cubic-inch-displacement (22.021 liter) Pratt & Whitney Wasp C nine-cylinder radial engine with a compression ratio of 5.25:1. It was rated at 420 horsepower at 2,000 r.p.m. at Sea Level, burning 58-octane gasoline. The engine drove a two-bladed controllable-pitch Hamilton Standard propeller through direct drive. The Wasp C was 3 feet, 6.63 inches (1.083 meters) long, 4 feet, 3.44 inches (1.3-7 meters) in diameter and weighed 745 pounds (338 kilograms).

The standard Vega 5 had a cruising speed of 165 miles per hour (266 kilometers per hour) and maximum speed of 185 miles per hour (298 kilometers per hour). The service ceiling was 15,000 feet (4,572 meters). Range with standard fuel tanks was 725 miles (1,167 kilometers).

© 2019, Bryan R. Swopes

18 June 1928

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Roald Amundsen, 1923 (UPI/Bettmann)

18 June 1928: At 4:05 p.m., Monday afternoon, world-famous Arctic explorer Roald Engelbregt Gravning Amundsen, along with five others, departed Tromsø, Norway, enroute to Spitzbergen, approximately 650 miles away across the Barents Sea.

Airship Italia at Svalbard.

On 25 May, the airship Italia, designed, built and under the command of Umberto Nobile, with a crew of 19, crashed on the arctic ice northeast of the island of Nordlaustlandet in Norway’s Svalbard archipelago. Italia was able to transmit a distress message, and a very large but disorganized search and rescue operation began.

Amundsen made arrangements with the government of France to use a prototype reconnaissance flying boat to look for Nobile and the other survivors.

Built by Société Latham & Cie., the second prototype Latham 47, Nº 02 , was being prepared at the company’s factory at Caudebec-en-Caux, Normandy, to be flown across the Atlantic Ocean to New York City by Capitaine de corvette René Cyprien Guilbaud.

Crew of Latham 47-02, left to right, Emile Valette, Albert Cavelier de Cuverville, René Guilbaud and Gilbert Brazy. (Aerophile)

Guilbaud, with Capitaine de corvette Albert Madeleine Ludovic Alphonse Cavelier de Cuverville; Gilbert George Paul Brazy, mechanic; Émile Valette, radio operator, departed on 16 June. They arrived at Bergen, Norway, the following day, where they picked up Amundsen and pilot Leif Ragnar Dietrichson, who had flown Amundsen on previous expeditions. They continued to Tromsø, north of the Arctic Circle in northern Norway.

“Flybåten Latham 47 registrering 47-02 i Tromsø 18 juni 1928. Kort før Roald Amundsen startet for å lete etter Nobile” (Anders Beer Wilse/Norsk Folkemuseum NF.WB 48692)
Lief Ragnar Dietrichson

At 7:00 p.m. on the 18th, a radio signal was received from the flying boat: “Do not leave listening. . . .”

Nothing more was heard. The rescue flight never arrived at Spitzbergen, and the six men were never seen again.

The Latham 47 was a twin-engine, two-bay biplane flying boat, designed as a naval reconnaissance aircraft for the Marine Nationale (the navy of France). The hydroavion was 16.30 meters (53.48 feet) long, with an upper wingspan of 25.20 meters (82.68 feet) and height of 5.20 meters (17.06 feet). The total wing area was 120.02 square meters (1,291.88 square feet). It had an empty weight of approximately 4,900 kilograms (10,803 pounds) and gross weight of 6,886 kilograms (15,181 pounds).

Latham 47 No. 02 at Tromsø, Norway, 18 june 1928. (Foto: Rognmosamlingen)

The Latham 47 was powered by two water-cooled, 25.485 liter (1,555.166 cubic inch displacement) Société des Avions H. M. et D. Farman 12We “broad arrow” 12-cylinder overhead valve engine with three banks of four cylinders separated by 40°. The engines were mounted in a central nacelle between the upper and lower wings. One was in tractor configuration and the other, a pusher arrangement. The Farman 12We had a compression ratio of 5.3:1,and was rated at 500 chaval vapeur (493 horsepower) at 2,000 r.p.m., and 550 chaval vapeur (543 horsepower) at 2,150 r.p.m. The engines drove four-bladed propellers through a 0.74:1 gear reduction. Each engine weighed 510 kilograms (1,124 pounds), dry.

The Latham 47 had a maximum speed of 170 kilometers per hour (106 miles per hour). Its ceiling was 4,000 meters (13,123 feet), and its range was 900 kilometers (559 miles).

Tromsø 18. juni 1928 (Foto: Vilhjelm Riksheim)

A memorial to the crew of Latham 47 No 02 was designed by architect Léon Rey and sculptor Robert Delandre. It was dedicated at Caudebec-en-Caux, 31 June 1931.

The Latham 47 Memorial at Caudebec-en-Caux, Normandy, France, dedicated 21 June 1931.

In 1969, “The Red Tent,” a Russian/Italian motion picture was made about the search and rescue of the survivors of Italia. The movie starred Sean Connery, Claudia Cardinale, Hardy Krüger and Peter Finch.

A recent photograph of the dramatic Latham 47 memorial at Caudebec-en-Caux, Normandy, France.

© 2018, Bryan R. Swopes