Incident Overview
Date: Saturday 28 September 1957
Aircraft Type: de Havilland DH-114 Heron 1B
Owner/operator: British European Airways – BEA
Registration Number: G-AOFY
Location: Islay-Glenegedale Airport (ILY) –
ÿ United Kingdom
Phase of Flight: Landing
Status: Destroyed, written off
Casualties: Fatalities: 3 / Occupants: 3
Component Affected: Aircraft wingAircraft wing
Category: Accident
An air ambulance aircraft, DH-114, crashed while attempting to land at Port Ellen due to a loss of height during a visual half circuit. The incident occurred under poor visibility conditions ? low cloud and drizzle ? and was triggered by the pilot’s failure to adequately assess the aircraft’s height loss.An air ambulance aircraft, DH-114, crashed while attempting to land at Port Ellen due to a loss of height during a visual half circuit. The incident occurred under poor visibility conditions ? low cloud and drizzle ? and was triggered by the pilot’s failure to adequately assess the aircraft’s height loss.
Description
An air ambulance aircraft was ordered to fly to Port Ellen to pick up a patient in urgent need of attention. DH-114 Heron G-AOFY carried out a VDF let-down at night in low cloud and poor visibility conditions. While turning to finals the left wing struck the ground causing the aircraft to crash. PROBABLE CAUSE: “The pilot did not appreciate that the aircraft had rapidly lost height whilst he was making a visual half circuit to land. This could not have been due to the absence of sufficient visual reference in the prevailing conditions of darkness, very low cloud and drizzle. The urgent nature of the flight is considered to have influenced the pilot’s decision to land.”
Primary Cause
Pilot’s failure to adequately assess aircraft height loss during a visual half circuit, exacerbated by poor visibility conditions.Pilot’s failure to adequately assess aircraft height loss during a visual half circuit, exacerbated by poor visibility conditions.Share on:
