1958 Syerston Avro Vulcan crash

1958 aviation accident July 2020 July 2017 1958 Syerston Avro Vulcan crash Accident Avro Vulcan prototype XV770 in flight.jpg 1.15 VX770, the aircraft involved in the accident 1958 09 20 yes Structural failure RAF Syerston, Nottinghamshire 53 1 22.49 N 0 54 45.51 W type:event inline,title Avro Vulcan (prototype) Rolls-Royce Limited VX770 Hucknall airfield Hucknall airfield 4 4 4 0 3 3 7 3 0 On 20 September 1958 a prototype Avro Vulcan bomber crashed during an air show at RAF Syerston, Nottinghamshire. All four crew on board and three people on the ground were killed.http://www.freewebs.com/keithstevenson/vulcancrash.htm Vulcan Crash Stevenson Keith 17 December 2012 https://web.archive.org/web/20130312044012/http://www.freewebs.com/keithstevenson/vulcancrash.htm 12 March 2013 live Citing BT 233/403 Flight VX770 was the first prototype Vulcan. It had first flown with Avon engines, and had later been fitted with Sapphires. More recently, it had been fitted with Rolls-Royce Conway engines; on the day of the accident it was flying from the Rolls-Royce airfield at Hucknall to test the Conways. The four crew on board included a flight test engineer from Avro. During the course of the test-flight VX770 diverted to RAF Syerston to participate in the Battle of Britain day air show.Blackman, p. 151 Accident The Vulcan flew along runway 07 then started a rolling climb to starboard. During this manoeuvre the starboard wing disintegrated, resulting in a collapse of the main spar and wing structure.Blackman, p.151 The Vulcan went into a dive with the starboard wing on fire and struck the ground. Three occupants of a controllers' caravan were killed by debris and all four of the Vulcan crew were killed. Three servicemen who were in an ambulance were injured by debris . Cause The official primary cause for the accident was a gross structural failure of the aircraft's main spar, which was confirmed by amateur footage, photographs and eyewitness accounts. The reason for the failure was not determined by the Board of Inquiry (BoI), but it was suggested by an accident investigator called in by Rolls-Royce that the main cause was that the pilot,File Note within TNA file BT 233/403 upon performing the planned aerobatic display, exceeded the prototype's briefed speed and turning rate limits. The accident investigator submitted a statement to the BoI, but did not give evidence under oath.BoI Report Appendix 1 within TNA file BT 233/403 The BoI was apparently not informed that the aircraft manufacturer considered the basis for the statement to be invalid.Avro letter dated 24 September 1958 within TNA file BT 233/403 The Technical Officer of the Board of Inquiry identified a suspected fatigue failure of the inboard arm of the front bottom wing attachment main forging, and suggested vibration from the high airflow volumes required by the RR Conway 11 engines as a possible cause.BoI Report Appendix 2(ii) within TNA file BT 233/403 The Royal Aircraft Establishment carried out a structural analysis of the wreckage and produced a report on 21 April 1960,RAE memorandum A/11265/12/WH within TNA file BT 233/403 but no copy has been found in the public record. Avro's then chief test pilot, Tony Blackman, has argued that the aircraft had probably suffered undetected damage during earlier flights during which the aircraft had reportedly been 'unofficially' rolled and looped by Rolls-Royce test pilot(s), and that the maintenance crew did not carry out an inspection for potential issues with stress damage to the aircraft's leading edges and nose ribs known to the manufacturer which had been observed in another prototype he had flown earlier. Avro reportedly inspected for damage using an exceptionally small technician after each aerobatic flight, Rolls may not have been aware of this practice.Blackman, p. 152-153 Notes Bibliography Blackman Tony Vulcan Test Pilot: My Experiences in the Cockpit of a Cold War Icon https://books.google.com/books?id=Qp4jMl2tDo8C 2009 Casemate Publishers 9781906502300 Vulcan Mk 1, VX770: RAF Syerston, Notts, 20 Sept. 1958 Official incident report at The National Archives External links Witness recalls the day a Vulcan bomber crashed at an airshow in Nottinghamshire, killing 7 people, 5 July 2020 "Anniversary of Vulcan crash" BBC News, 19 September 2008. Aviation Safety Network accident report Category:Aviation accidents and incidents in England Category:Accidents and incidents involving Royal Air Force aircraft Category:Aviation accidents and incidents in 1958 Category:1958 in England Category:Aviation accidents and incidents involving the Avro Vulcan Category:September 1958 in the United Kingdom Category:Aviation accidents and incidents caused by in-flight structural failure