Gipsy Moth G-AAZG down 12 August 2013 - Northampton
 

BBC

BBC News - Boy, 11, injured in plane crash near Canons Ashby House


An 11-year-old boy has been airlifted to hospital with serious injuries after a light aircraft crashed in south Northamptonshire.
The youngster was a passenger in the plane, which came down near Canons Ashby House, a National Trust property, at 11:45 BST.
The boy, who was a passenger, was airlifted to Birmingham Children's Hospital.
The pilot has been treated at the scene.

If you are looking for more news, as I am, then this local news site is reporting..Pilot and boy injured in light aircraft crash in Northamptonshire - Local News - Banbury Guardian

I'm amazed how many of the general public think that if an aeroplane's engine fails, that 'will send it crashing to the ground'.

And of course, a Gipsy engine will momentarily cut out at the top of a correctly-flown loop as it doesn't have an inverted fuel system.

Wishing them a speedy recovery.

Banbury Guardian does a thorough and accurate article....poor old Gipsy Moth, which is depicted intact on GINFO

Why o why do pilots take kids up and show off with areobatics? isn't it sufficiently thrilling to just go flying, especially in an elderly open cockpit, without the urge to be throwing it around....

???? I Really do not see the problem with this, apart from the comment about "showing off". Many kids enjoy aeros and the younger you start them often the happier they are, my kids were both turned upside down younger than 11 and there was no "showing off" involved, they wanted to and I thought they would enjoy the experience, which they did. And just because the aircraft is elderly does not cause a problem in itself as long as it is properly maintained and correct procedures are followed such as having sufficient height for a restart. When it is know exactly what happened here, that is the time to comment on what should or should not have been done.:mad:

Experienced pilot with vintage aircraft - aviation enthusiast in every sense of the word - not the sort of person who is likely to have been showing off as have met him personally... as Foxmoth says, not time for speculation, only time for wishing both pilot and passenger speedy recoveries - it could have been a lot worse...

Err, no it won't.

:rolleyes:

One eye-witness says they were doing aeros (but is probably not particularly experienced in aviation as he's aged 19) and the disapproving decide the pilot is at fault.

The report actually says "Eyewitness Ben Nichols, aged 19, described the moment the engine of the plane sounded like it “cut out” while performing a loop.

He said: “We saw it go up and it looked like it was climbing. It just looked like it cut out and it came down and it crashed into the next field and it has been smashed up a bit. It made a bit of a thump.

It looked like it went to do a loop and it sounded like the engine cut out. It looks like they had to cut the cockpit to get them out."

Err, yes it will. Unless you fly egg-shaped loops.

:rolleyes:

We are talking an inexpert witness here, may or may not have been a loop and the engine may or may not have cut out in whatever manoeuvre it was, normally it will restart instantly, the only time it is a problem is if the prop stops turning, then it takes about 1500' straight down to restart - again, normally no problem, if you have the height.
No clues that i have seen to say he crashed off a manoeuvre, did a glide from 3,000'+ or what. As said before - do not know, wait for the enquiry!:ugh:

Mine doesn't either.

Foxmoth, me old china, if you are happy to wait a year for the AAIB report to emerge, why let us all respectfully refrain from making any observations that may serve to inform those with a legitimate interest. Which is the point of PPRuNe, despite all the chaff there is occasionally a sensible contribution.

Meanwhile I am pleased to read the Oxford Mail report that neither pilot nor young passenger has suffered life threatening injury and both are expected to recover.

Mary M'dear,
I am happy to look at what happened with decent observation, but a press report based on the observations of a 19 year old non pilot and a statement by the pilots own company is, IMHO, hardly a credibly basis to start from - as someone that regularly aeros a vintage dH aircraft as part of my work I do know something of what is involved here and hence the contributions I have made and my disappointment in your own comments about aeros in said aircraft!
My own criteria BTW - Overhead a suitable area for a forced landing ( I will already know which field before I start) and, unless actually over an airfield, sufficient height (3,000+) to have tried a dive restart and recovered in time to set myself up to land in said field in the event of not restarting. I know this works as I have had to use it in the past, both with and without successfully restarting ! With less currency than I manage, I would suggest a greater height than this (4,000'+?). When I have had the prop stop it has never been off a loop, always off a stall turn, and if doing this for any reason then I use 4,000' as a minimum myself.
What the pilot in this incident had as his own criteria and how he ended where he did we do not know and have few proper clues for!

Agreed, very occasionally.

Yes indeed, Foxmoth, HASSLL checks appropriate to the craft.

I don't have to worry about engine cutout when I throw the K13 around a bit, but do prefer to begin a spin no lower than 1,200. However, we will continue to disagree on the best way to introduce other people's children to aviation.

Yup, the only prop-stop I have had in aerobatting the Chippy was off a stall turn. I'm a coward and aerobat at 4,000' (cpal*), and it air-started Ok (it was back in the day when the electric start often was non-operational, on a day when that was the case).

*Cowardice prolongs active life, as a very wise aviator used to say. Where are you Rufus?

Gipsy Moth down G-AAZG
 

Hadn't read about this until a friend, who in turn is good friends with Giles, told me he had gone down. I'm very glad everyone seems to be recovering. Giles and his brother run the Bremont watch company.

Pilot Giles English who crash-landed vintage plane at Canons Ashby lost his dad in similar accident - Mirror Online