1947 Croydon Dakota accident
Encyclopedia
The 1947 Croydon Dakota accident occurred on the 25 January 1947 when a Spencer Airways Douglas C-47A Dakota failed to get airborne from Croydon Airport
Croydon Airport
Croydon Airport was an airport in South London which straddled the boundary between what are now the London boroughs of Croydon and Sutton. It was the main airport for London before it was replaced by Northolt Aerodrome, London Heathrow Airport and London Gatwick Airport...

, located near London, and crashed into a parked and empty CSA
Czech Airlines
Czech Airlines j.s.c. , trading as Czech Airlines , is the national airline of the Czech Republic and temporary in Slovakia with its head office on the grounds of Ruzyně Airport in Ruzyně, Prague...

 Douglas C-47 destroying both aircraft and killing eleven passengers and one crew member.

Accident

It was snowing and the airfield at Croydon was covered in dark snow clouds when at 11:40 the Spencer Airways Dakota departed bound for Salisbury in Rhodesia
Rhodesia
Rhodesia , officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state located in southern Africa that existed between 1965 and 1979 following its Unilateral Declaration of Independence from the United Kingdom on 11 November 1965...

. The C-47A had just lifted from the runway at Croydon when the starboard wing dropped, then the aircraft turned to the left and the port wing dropped. The pilot was seen to apply full starboard aileron but the bank angle increased to 40 degrees with the port wing tip only a few feet from the ground. As the aircraft reached the perimeter track of the airfield, the aircraft levelled and then swung to the right. The aircraft bounced on the ground and crashed head-on into a parked CSA
CSA
-Agriculture, Farming, and Food:* Community Supported Agriculture* Community Shared Agriculture-Politics, Administration and Military:* Confederate States of America* Canadian Securities Administrators* Canadian Space Agency* Canadian Standards Association...

 Douglas C-47; both aircraft caught fire, and were subsequently destroyed. Eleven of the 18 passengers and one of the five crew died.

Aftermath

Seven of the 11 survivors were taken to Croydon General Hospital but only two had to stay for further treatment. Two mechanics who where working on the CSA aircraft escaped without injury.

The Ministry of Civil Aviation instituted "an inspection of Certificates of Airworthiness, Certificates of Safety and crew licences" at airfields under their control to ensure these documents were in order.
The aircraft did not have a C of A, nor a valid certificate of safety, and no member of crew held a Navigators licence.

Investigation

A coroners inquest was opened at Croydon on 29 January 1947 into the twelve deaths. It was determined that all but three of the deaths were caused by ashpyxia from the inhalation of smoke and flames. One of the male passengers died from a severe blow to the head, another from a cerebal haemorrhage. The pilot and owner of the aircraft Edward Spencer died from carbon monoxide poisoning. After an account by the aircraft's engineer the inquest was postponed until 18 February. The inquest resumed with evidence from the co-pilot and witnesses on the ground, the jury returned a verdict of misadventure.

Following the completion of the coroners court the Chief Inspector of Accidents opened an enquiry on 24 February. Evidence was taken from the surviving passengers and crew and baggage loaders. The co-pilot explained that the aircraft had just been delivered from the United States to Heathrow Airport
London Heathrow Airport
London Heathrow Airport or Heathrow , in the London Borough of Hillingdon, is the busiest airport in the United Kingdom and the third busiest airport in the world in terms of total passenger traffic, handling more international passengers than any other airport around the globe...

 following the purchase by Spencer. It had been ferried to Croydon the day before the accident and the long-range fuel tanks had been removed and the seats fitted. Preparing the aircraft had taken all day and night and Spencer was said to have had only two hours sleep. In the morning the starboard engine had a lack of pressure but the co-pilot and the radio operator said they was satisfied it was OK before the flight. Another witness gave evidence that the wings were covered in snow and he had not seen any attempt to defrost the aircraft. A statement given by an inspector of police from Northern Rhodesia
Northern Rhodesia
Northern Rhodesia was a territory in south central Africa, formed in 1911. It became independent in 1964 as Zambia.It was initially administered under charter by the British South Africa Company and formed by it in 1911 by amalgamating North-Western Rhodesia and North-Eastern Rhodesia...

attested to the fact that Spencer did not smoke or drink and had many hours flying experience since the early 1930s. Following the statement about Spencer's lack of sleep the counsel representing the next-of-kin of Captain Spencer made a formal protest that they had not been able to question the statement. The inquiry was closed on the 28 February following technical evidence and a statement from an aircraft engineer who had witnessed that the starboard engine had been in "a bad state" and was popping and spluttering before the aircraft had taken off.

Cause

The accident was determined to be the result of loss of control by the pilot while attempting to take-off in a heavily loaded aircraft in poor visibility. Other factors may have been the pilot's lack of experience on the type, snow and frost of the wings and fatigue of the pilot.

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