Downend air crash

Downend Air Crash

Accident summary
Date	6 November 1957
Type	unknown cause
Site	Downend, near Bristol, UK
Passengers	0
Crew	15
Injuries	0
Fatalities	15
Survivors	0
Aircraft type	Bristol Britannia Type 301
Operator	Bristol Aeroplane Company
Tail number	G-ANCA

The Downend air crash occurred on 6 November 1957 when a prototype Bristol Britannia aircraft crashed in woods near Overndale Road in Downend Village, near Bristol, England, on its landing approach at Filton airport during a test flight. All fifteen onboard, four crew and 11 technicians died in the crash.^[1]

A memorial service was held at Bristol Cathedral on 19 November 1957. A memorial plaque at the crash site, now called Britannia Wood, was unveiled on 3 November 2007 by the widow of the aircraft's pilot.

Cause

The exact cause of the crash was never determined, but was suspected to be a malfunction of the autopilot, possibly due to faulty wiring. The company which manufactured the autopilot system issued a statement claiming it was not due to the autopilot system, but still altered the system in newer aircraft; the official report states unknown cause but "the autopilot system cannot be ruled out as the likely cause".

Another source cites the cause as "...an instrument failure which ultimately led to a loss of control."^[2]

Casualties

The 15-man crew perished in the crash. Despite the aircraft coming down in a residential area, nobody was killed on the ground. One lady, an occupant of Overndale Road, was taken to hospital when out hanging washing on the line in the garden was hurt by the impact blast when one of the engines and part of the wing landed next to the house.^[1]

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "15 Killed In Britannia Test Flight Crash" (News). The Times (London). Thursday, 7 November 1957. Issue 53992, col E, p. 10.
2. ^ "Accident Synopsis » 11061957". Airdisaster.com. http://www.airdisaster.com/cgi-bin/view_details.cgi?date=11061957&reg=G-ANCA&airline=Bristol+Corporation. Retrieved 22 November 2006.