Keith Sturt - Vulcan accident Syerston 1958

[CoulthardC]

Dear all,

My name is Catherine Coulthard and I am looking for any further information regarding Keith Sturt who piloted the Vulcan that fatefully crashed on 20th Sept 1958 at Syerston. He was married to my Grandmother Norah. They never had children and throughout the rest of her days she never liked to talk about what happened in 1958 - she saw the accident happen as she was there. I wanted to know if anyone here knew Keith, whether he has family still alive today? She was originally married to my late Grandfather AVM Colin Coulthard but that marriage dissolved in 1957. I would like to know where I can obtain the video footage of the accident. Any further information would be greatly appreciated.

All the best,

Catherine

[PPRuNe Pop]

I would suggest that any information should be via PM to Catherine.

As we had this thread recently it would serve little purpose to start it over again but clearly if we can help I think we must do so.

PPP

[D120A]

Catherine, please see your PMs.

[CoulthardC]

I'm so very touched at already receiving some invaluable information - thank you - please keep the messages coming in! I would also be grateful for any information regarding my late Grandfather AVM Colin Coulthard who gave a good few years of his career to the RAF in all manner of exploits from Spitfire pilot in Malta to Air Attache in Washington. I am currently compiling a family biography and have already exhausted all routes of enquiry within the family.

Many thanks to all.

Catherine

[Safeware]

I've PM'd Catherine, with some info inc the the results of a google search on: "colin coulthard" raf

Undoubtedly an interesting man.

sw

[Flatiron]

Catherine
If you want to know the story of the last flight of first prototype Vulcan VX770, which came apart at Syerstion on 20 September 1958, I covered it with photos from the cine film in 'Crash', Ian Allan 1991, pp.51-54. I don't know if Keith was the Rolls-Royce or Fairey test pilot on board, but whoever was flying seems to have pulled 2-3 'g' while clocking up 410-420kts, and the airframe didn't stand a chance. Sorry about that.

[sharmine]

http://forum.keypublishing.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=146873 (http://forum.keypublishing.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=146873)

This link should take you to a photo of the inflight break up. Tragic.

Sharmine

[IronHen]

I still have a vivid memory of the Vulcan crash - I lived near Hucknall (Rolls Royce test centre) where the aircraft was based and had cycled to Syerston to see the air display. A neighbour who worked at the plant described that the aircraft had recently needed the upper wing skin re-rivetting due to flight stresses...
My condolences to the families of crew and ground staff in the ACR7 hut who tragically lost their lives that day.

[YakB]

Catherine,
I may have access to the video - I will check when next able and advise, unless you confirm you have been able to get a copy.
Rgds
YakB

[Milt]

Flatiron

I once flew a Vulcan Mk1 to the corner of the flight test envelope which was 415Kts, 0.98 IMN and 3.0g with weapon bay door open. Elevators were close to max in a spiral dive aiming to have 415Kts coincide with 0.98IMN. Lost control with nose down pitch and full up elevators. Recovered control in denser air following power off and speed brakes following a supersonic excursion.

Subsequently learned that ribs in the nose cone were the weakest part of the airframe under high Q (IAS) which explained a pop open of the oxygen filler access during the above. Rear bulkhead of the weapon bay was deformed. We must have been a smidgen away from the same fate as VX770.

VX770 could be expected to go out to around 415 Kts without a problem except for possible inadequate quality of the reskinning of portion of a wing. Also there may have been a restricted performance envelope on VX770.

I heartell that VX770 exceeded 415Kts by a substantial margin.

[Flatiron]

Milt
As a Rolls-Royce test bed for the bypass engines that would eventually power the Victor B2 and VC10, VX770 was flying with Conway 11s rated at 17,500lb thrust. As you say, it probably exceeded 415kts by a goodly margin. Ironically, the airframe broke up at the very point on the wing leading edge which Avro tests in 1950 had shown to be the weakest party of the structure. You were lucky.

[Bramble 44]

I , too , was a spectator to this tragic accident having been taken to the show at the age of 11 by my parents from nearby Newark.

Not surprisingly ,it is still vivid in my mind today.

[tantalite]

I was also present at that display, ironically the first song I heard afterwards was Volare!
I was with my parents and a school friend who later went on to be a Victor Tanker driver and get a DFC for Black Buck.
The crash was horrendous, I was only 8 and remember it vividly, I was not aware of the speeds involved until reading this site, was also not aware this was a prototype. I knew it had Rolls Royce tech on and that it hit a red & white at the runway end. I think the death toll was 13?
I later served on Vulcans for 5 years in the RAF.
My sympathies to the relatives of the deceased.

[toscouk]

I was 6 at the time think it was a Battle of Britain display all I remember was the Vulcan bomber flying low along the airfield then just opposite from my position a bit of wing broke off and the aircraft cashed beyond the end of the runway.

http://bp3.blogger.com/_kcQcREbOE68/R-LU1MEzGtI/AAAAAAAAAB0/229AEfH-3G8/s320/syerstonprog.jpg
more info on crash on this forum.....
http://www.avrovulcan.org.uk/cgi-bin/ikonboard3/ikonboard.cgi?;act=ST;f=4;t=13


John

[toscouk]

Crash report National Archives at Kew file is BT 233/403

http://www.john-dillon.co.uk/V-Force/vx770.html

[bspatz]

I was a 9 year old living in married quarters and saw the accident from our house. My Mother also drove the NAAFI wagon that went round the camp and I recall riding with her to the crash site to provide tea and sandwiches to the crash recovery team who pointed out that the largest bit of the aircraft left on the airfield was the tailcone and that two of the engines were somehere in a farmers field. Also our next door neighbour was one of those killed on the ground and the injured survivor was a fireman, who who bravely tried to warn those in the caravan before running away himself. In all it was dreadful accident which might have been much worse if the aircraft had rolled towards rather than away from the crowd line.

[CoulthardC]

I am so pleased at the incredible response that I have had since first writing this thread. I've managed to speak to Tony Blackman author of 'Vulcan Test Pilot' and who knew my Step Grandfather Keith Sturt very well. I am trying to find out more regarding the cause of the accident as my Grandmother had argued the fact that the VX770 in question required urgent maintenance due to stress damage and that this was not due to pilot error. I am still desperately on the search for the 17second clip of amateur film that was taken on the day.

Also on the softer side I am also trying to find friends/ family of Keith...anyone who may have known him, his origins, what sort of a chap he was and where he is now buried?

Many thanks once again.

Catherine

[EnigmAviation]

One of the Pilots was Mr R W Ford (John) seconded from Fairey Aviation Company at Ringway (M/C) - a Test pilot there w.e.f. April 1954. He was seconded to Rolls Royce to assist with development flying on the Conway powered Vulcan in August 1958 following a period with Avions Fairey at Gosselies, Belgium.

He had previously served in the RAF from 1941 - aged 19, and became a Test pilot with an RAF MU. Joined Fighter Command in Sept 1951 and left the RAF in 1953. He had flown nearly 2500hrs on 35 different types

[EnigmAviation]

Read your PM, will send E Mail

[portiragnes]

Hi Catherine,
I cannot provide any information on the pilot of the vulcan, but I was in the ATC band that was marching on the runway at the time of the accident. The a/c came over our heads at a low altitude and there was an explosion, bits fell from the a/c onto the runway just missing us. The tail chute operated and it fell in a gentle arc onto, so I am told, a fire tender racing to intercept it, killing 3 or 4 people in the tender. The ATC cadets were subsequently asked to assist in collecting the a/c debris from off the runway. The vulcan was apparantly being used a a test bed for a new rolls royce engine. I believe the plane suffered structural fatigue and that this was the cause of the accident. I am sorry I could not help you but I thought you would be interested in someone elses view of the tradegy.
Regards
Peter

[toscouk]

On 20 September 1958, a Rolls Royce test pilot was authorized to fly VX770 on an engine performance sortie with a fly past at RAF Syerston Battle of Britain "At Home" display. The briefing was for the pilot to fly over the airfield twice at 200–300 ft (60–90 m), flying at a speed of 250–300 knots (460–560 km/h). The Vulcan flew along the main 25/07 runway then started a roll to starboard and climbed slightly. Very shortly a kink appeared in the starboard mainplane leading edge followed by a stripping of the leading edge of the wing. The starboard wingtip then broke followed by a collapse of the main spar and wing structure. Subsequently, the Vulcan went into a dive and began rolling with the starboard wing on fire and struck the ground at the taxiway of the end of runway 07. Three occupants of a controllers' caravan were killed by debris, a fourth being injured. All four of the Vulcan crew were killed. The cause of the crash was pilot error; the captain flew the aircraft over the airfield at 410–420 knots (760–780 km/h) instead of the briefed 250–300 knots he had also descended to a height of 65–70 ft (approximately 20 m). Rolling the Vulcan to starboard while flying at this speed, the aircraft was rolled at a rate of 15–20 degrees/second while pulling up into a 3,000 ft (910 m) per minute climb imposing a strain of between 2–3 g where it should have remained below 1.25 g. The VX770 was a prototype and was not as strong as later production models, indeed buckling of the leading edge in this plane was a known problem and was the primary reason for low flight performance limits being imposed.

[BEagle]

If the cine film could be found, perhaps a more accurate assessment of the flypast speed could be made. 'Witness estimates' at air shows are notoriously unreliable.

The original Mk 1 had a substantial altimeter position error at approach speeds; did VX770 have similar errors at higher speeds? And on what altimter setting was the '250 ft' flown? I other words, it cannot be certain that the height of the flypast was a deliberate contravention of the flight authorisation.

Was the aircraft really within less than one wingspan of the runway?

Vulcan VX770 was a hybrid; it was the original first prototype which had ultimately been fitted with Conway engines at Hucknall for engine development testing. It lacked the strength of the Mk1 and with lower structural weight and around 70000 lb of thrust compared to the original 26000 lb of thrust, it would have been a very 'hot ship' indeed. But the most serious issue is that RAF and company test pilots had routinely been flying wholly unnecessary aerobatics in the aircraft; it had often been rolled, and, on at least one occasion, it had actually been looped. A fact that had been covered up and probably wasn't made known to the crash investigators. Rolls-off-the-top had also been flown, so it is highly likely that the aircraft had been substantially damaged by other pilots before the Syerston crash.

In those days, there was intense competition between aircraft companies and each would try to outdo the other. So the practice of flying wholly pointless and potentially seriously damaging aerobatics in medium bombers such as the Vulcan would not have raised many eyebrows.

Even if the display pilot exceeded his brief - and do we really know that - the most likely cause of the accident, to my mind, was the damage inflicted by the irresponsible flying of other pilots.

Some years ago, we had more fuel leaks than normal in one of our VC10K3s. After a bit of delving, and looking at fatigue records, it was evident that one pilot (whose enthusiasm was not matched by his flying ability) had flown at least 3 fast flypasts at high weight with high 'g' (for a VC10) into a climbout. One departure from Abbotsford with over 80 tonnes of fuel on board had included a 300 KIAS flypast in slight turbulence, then a ham fisted yug into a climb. That single flypast put over a year's worth of fatigue on the aeroplane.....

[CoulthardC]

Some of you will recall my request to obtain as much info possible regarding my Step Grand Father Keith Sturt and his crash in the Avro VX770 Vulcan at Syerston. The BBC have picked up on this story based on my You Tube footage tribute to Keith. They desperately need to get in touch with someone who works or who has connections with RAF Syerston to be able to access it next week and do some filming for 'East Midlands Today' news in time for the 50th anniversary on 20th Sept. I remember how some of you have come forward from the Gliding school there but don't have any telephone numbers. Can someone get in touch with me asap so that I can put you in touch with the BBC please? Apparently they are also interested in doing a documentary about the accident to be televised later this year. Thanks so much for all your help so far!

[CoulthardC]

For those of you who wish to view the Syerston 1958 crash and a Tribute to Keith Sturt please go to:

Tribute: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=RzJi4EV28rE (http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=RzJi4EV28rE)


Footage:http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=KGOY1jZGNHU (http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=KGOY1jZGNHU)

[airborne_artist]

No 644 Volunteer Gliding Squadron (http://www.644vgs.org/) is at Syerston - contact info on the web site.

[Warmtoast]

Catherine

BBC should try the MOD Press Office

MoD Press Office Duty Number: 0207 218 7907

Or for media enquiries in the EASTERN Area:
Eleanor Treharne-Jones
Tel: 01480 425346

[EnigmAviation]

Contact OC ACCGS = [email protected] or by telephone Mon to Fri 0830 to 1700 on +44 01636525467.

[klingonbc]

Catherine,
Please check your Private Messages
KBC

[noprobs]

The BBC East Midlands Today item is now online through the BBC website at BBC NEWS | England | Anniversary of Vulcan crash (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/7626243.stm) . It was shown on Friday evening under the title Anniversary of Vulcan Crash, though today, 20th September, is the actual anniversary.
I, too, was there, as a schoolboy, having cycled to the event. I don't recall seeing the video before, but it looked just as I had remembered it. The accident obviously didn't deter me too much, as I subsequently went into the military flying business, and still enjoy it today.
This morning, I walked around Newark, where RAFA members were collecting for Wings Week. I stopped to talk to the Chairman of the Newark Branch, and found that the man already in conversation with him had also been at Syerston that day!

[TheVulcan]

Just seen the communications re Keith Sturt. I am absolutely convinced the leading edge of VX770 was damaged before Keith took off. The aircraft had been doing a lot of aerobatics prior to the accident and at Woodford we had a special small man who used to crawl up and down the leading edges to inspect for damage and repair as necessary. I do not believe that Keith exceeded the maximum speed of VX770 which was 300 knots. The aircraft had been doing rolls off the top and I understand on good authority one loop; the maximum permitted g for the aircraft was only 2g and in my experience that probably would not have been enough for the vertical manoeuvres.
It is so easy to blame the pilot when he is not there and of course there was no crash recorder, just a very poor amateur film.
There is a very clear single frame picture of the leading edge coming off.

[BEagle]

That wouldn't surprise me in the least, Tony.

In RAF service, the Vulcan was cleared for manoeuvres 'appropriate for a medium bomber'......

But no-one ever did tell us what that meant!

Is there sufficient compelling evidence to have the case re-opened at this late stage? If irresponsible flying by RAF crews had caused unknown damage, Keith Sturt was surely the victim of manslaughter?

[kenparry]

Beagle:

I understand your sentiments above, but was 770 ever fown by RAF crews? As the 1st prototype, would it not have remained in the hands of test pilots?

[BEagle]

Vulcan VX770 was a hybrid; it was the original first prototype which had ultimately been fitted with Conway engines at Hucknall for engine development testing. It lacked the strength of the Mk1 and with lower structural weight and around 70000 lb of thrust compared to the original 26000 lb of thrust, it would have been a very 'hot ship' indeed. But the most serious issue is that RAF and company test pilots had routinely been flying wholly unnecessary aerobatics in the aircraft; it had often been rolled, and, on at least one occasion, it had actually been looped. A fact that had been covered up and probably wasn't made known to the crash investigators. Rolls-off-the-top had also been flown, so it is highly likely that the aircraft had been substantially damaged by other pilots before the Syerston crash.

[AndoniP]

hi cat

I posted a youtube clip of the crash in the "did you fly the Vulcan" thread but I can't find it now as I'm on my iPod. Try looking in that thread and I'll have another look tomorrow.

All the best

Andoni

[dianne25]

Hi Catherine, Just wondering if you found at where your stepgrandfather is buried. I came across the burial when doing some family history on the Ashfield council website of cemeteries for Hucknall and looked up the incident on the web, I used to work at Rolls Royce hucknall myself , but later on 1964. My mum worked there also and was a waitress to the test pilots and served their meals and laid out tables for them. Unfortunately she is no longer alive and I don't know if she would have known Keith.This should take you to the page the burial is entered on. http://www.ashfield-dc.gov.uk/ashfieldcemeteries/images/burials/Hucknall/1949_2006/pics_Compressed/Page_00087.jpg

Apologies if you already know this. Best Regards, Di.

[john kenneth ford]

Ron Ford was my grandad Leonard Fords brother Williams son/ I was told about this terrible crash many times over, so i am trying to gather as much info as i can to pass on to my grand children.Any info would be much appreciated.

[petermcleland]

Catherine,

My website has a few photos of Colin Coulthard...Maybe some you don't have:-

Logbook (http://www.petermcleland.com)

You are welcome to use any of them :)

[Lyan]

Just seen this thread I too was there that day I was eight years old. My father was an air traffic controller there. He was due to go out to the runway caravan but someone stopped to talk to him on his way there so he was very lucky. We knew Eddie Simpson very well and kept in contact with his wife and daughter for many years. My brother went on to fly Vulcans years later and was on display team.

[OKOC]

Apologies if this has been posted elsewhere: https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x37k8uu_avro-vulcan-crash-in-20th-september-1958-at-raf-syerston_fun

RIP

[Julie Paulson]

I have just found your Keith Sturt Gravesone