Date Posted:16/07/04 8:35:00 Author:John Cooper Subject: Blackburn Beverley Crash
Can anyone add to this please?
Whilst searching for information on the incident below, I came across your website and wondered if perhaps you had any more information on this crash.......
Tragedy struck on the 7th March 1967, when a RAF transport aircraft crashed shortly after taking off from RAF Abingdon on route to Cyprus. With the exception of two members of the crew, all the other seventeen people onboard the aircraft, including nine RAF Police NCOs and their dogs were killed, along with two civilians on the ground. The young RAF Police NCOs had recently completed their training to become dog handlers, and together with their dogs had been posted out to Cyprus. As the investigation began into the cause of the crash, it transpired that the ill-fated flight had apparently been postponed a number of times during the previous few days. The tragic event shocked the RAF Police Branch and more so the instructors and staff at the RAF Police Dog Training School, who had recently trained and graduated the nine NCOs and their dogs.
Questions
Type of aircraft
Names of the RAFP NCOs and other passengers who perished
Cause of the accident
From John Cooper
Hi Steve
Thanks for your email
Try this:
Blackburn Beverley XH117 at RAF Abingdon on 5th March 1957, 17 persons on board died.
If you pass this information onto the RAF Museum at Hendon they should give you an accident report in return. I would be interested in what this report has to say.
One of the RAF policemen killed in this accident was Cpl Tony Blakey a cousin of mine.
At the time of the accident I was returning to the UK from RAF Seletar after completing my National Service. I heard the news when our flight stopped at RAF Habbaniya for an overnight stop, I did not know of course that my cousin was one of the fatalities.
I arrived home in Boston, Lincs. at 0400hrs on what I think was the following Saturday.
At 1100hrs I was in the local parish church attending Tony's funeral.
Weeks later I was told by my Uncle that the cause of the crash had been the fitting of a fuel valve the wrong way round by the ground crew and a member of this crew was to be courtmartialled but I am not sure how accurate this information was.
I believe you are right in that a non return fuel valve was fitted incorrectly and I am sorry to hear that one of those on board was a relative of yours.
I too had a cousin who was seriously burned in a helicopter accident in Rutland, he lived a few more years before dying of a heart attack.
my name is Veronica
I have just read the posts on voy.com and would
dearly love to get hold of those reports and get in contact
with anyone who new my father
Sergeant Douglas Robinson,
he was on board that flight.
I was a baby when he died and sadly never knew him
my mother never told me and would never talk about him.
After 50years it just never went away so i decided to do some research in order to lay it to rest and find my uncle
his brother Brian who also was in the RAF.
I have come across the son of the RAF Chaplin/reverend who was involved in the rescue and I am waiting for information from him.
Apart from the info on this web site I have a photo of the military funeral with some members I presume of the squadron (that also is unknown to me) and know that he along with others from the crash are buried in abingdon.
I was thinking of putting up a website in memory of my father and all the other men who died for the 50th Anniversary next year, and would like to get hold of the passenger list.
Any info and photos would be deeply appreciated.
Veronica
I now have a detailed account plus a couple of photographs of this crash sent to me by a team researching this prang. It resulted in a non return fuel being fitted incorrectly by a Senior Technician, starving # 1 & 2 engines of fuel.
I will not post the details here as it is quite a harrowing report but if anyone should need this information please contact me and I will forward it on.
my name is Veronica
I have just read the posts on voy.com and would
dearly love to get hold of those reports and get in contact
with anyone who new my father
Sergeant Douglas Robinson,
he was on board that flight.
I was a baby when he died and sadly never knew him
my mother never told me and would never talk about him.
After 50years it just never went away so i decided to do some research in order to lay it to rest and find my uncle
his brother Brian who also was in the RAF.
I have come across the son of the RAF Chaplin/reverend who was involved in the rescue and I am waiting for information from him.
Apart from the info on this web site I have a photo of the military funeral with some members I presume of the squadron (that also is unknown to me) and know that he along with others from the crash are buried in abingdon.
I was thinking of putting up a website in memory of my father and all the other men who died for the 50th Anniversary next year, and would like to get hold of the passenger list.
Any info and photos would be deeply appreciated.
Veronica
Like Veronica I too lost my Dad, Walter James Owen (Wally) in the same air crash at Sutton Wick. Since this morning we are now exchanging e-mails along with John Cooper.
Although I was told about the crash by my Mum and have newspaper cuttings and photos, I too would be grateful if you could forward me the crash report and any further information you may have.
Thank you.
Linda
I am the grandaughter of one of the victims on the ground. Also in the house was a young man taking an electricity reading. Could ask you please to e mail me the reports as my father still hates talking about it and I really would love to learn what happened. Thanks with anticipation.
I have just come accross your post now, so this request may be a little late, but if you have any details of the accident I woud like to see them. I worked on Beverleys in the RAF, and I beleive the technician who made the error was a fellow student during training, allthough I was posted to a different unit. In my present job I am involved in aircraft regulation and strategies to avoid this kind of human error, which regretably still happen, so I am particularly interested in this accident because of the personal link as well as the professional one.
I now have a detailed account plus a couple of photographs of this crash sent to me by a team researching this prang. It resulted in a non return fuel valve being fitted incorrectly by a Senior Technician, starving # 1 & 2 engines of fuel.
I will not post the details here as it is quite a harrowing report but if anyone should need this information please contact me and I will forward it on.
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Re: Blackburn Beverley Crash -- ralph williams, 16/11/04 21:53:08
on the day of the crash i was working as a cook in no.2 sergeants mess, we had a view of all take offs, and landings.The Beverly looked like it was coming in to land on one engine,as this sometimes happened, we thought no more of it until a short time later when the emergency alarms went off.
the plane had crashed about four miles on, in a village called Drayton.
Re: Blackburn Beverley Crash -- MRS PEARL BUTLER nee GORST, 21/04/09 16:55:30