Incident Overview
Date: Monday 17 June 1929
Aircraft Type: Handley Page W.10
Owner/operator: Imperial Airways
Registration Number: G-EBMT
Location: 5 km E off Dungeness –
ÿ United Kingdom
Phase of Flight: En route
Status: Destroyed, written off
Casualties: Fatalities: 7 / Occupants: 13
Component Affected: The connecting rod assembly on the starboard engine’s big-end bearing studs.The connecting rod assembly on the starboard engine’s big-end bearing studs.
Category: Accident
A W.10 plane, the ‘City of Ottawa’, crashed into the English Channel after losing engine power due to a fracture of the connecting rod assembly on the starboard engine. Investigation revealed fatigue fractures in the big-end bearing studs on the port side, leading to the breakage of the connecting rod. The flight originated from London to Zurich, Switzerland, via Paris, France, and Basel, Switzerland.A W.10 plane, the ‘City of Ottawa’, crashed into the English Channel after losing engine power due to a fracture of the connecting rod assembly on the starboard engine. Investigation revealed fatigue fractures in the big-end bearing studs on the port side, leading to the breakage of the connecting rod. The flight originated from London to Zurich, Switzerland, via Paris, France, and Basel, Switzerland.
Description
The W.10 plane named “City of Ottawa” crash-landed into the sea of the English Channel following loss of engine power. Investigators found the No. 4 connecting rod assembly of the starboard engine completely broken as a result of a fracture of the big-end bearing studs. It appeared that the bearing studs on the port side of the bearing fractured in fatigue. The airplane operated on a flight from London-Croydon to Zrich, Switzerland, via Paris, France and Basel, Switzerland. The primary cause of the accident was the fracture under fatigue of studs in the front or No. 4 big end bearing of the starboard engine.
Primary Cause
Fatigue fracture of the connecting rod assembly on the starboard engine’s big-end bearing studs.Fatigue fracture of the connecting rod assembly on the starboard engine’s big-end bearing studs.Share on:
