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The Hindenburg disaster: Static electricity, case closed finally?

Seventy six years after the Hindenburg disaster, a team led by a British aeronautical engineer says it now knows what caused the airship’s destruction: static electricity. Of course, that may not come as a shocking revelation to anyone who has read up on the tragedy as the static electricity theory has been around for just as long as the various other theories – including all of the conspiracy theories (See the cause of ignition heading under the Wikipedia entry for the disaster).

This time around though Jem Stansfield, a British aeronautical engineer, led a team of researchers at the Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio, Texas, who blew up and set fire to airship models to rule out other possibilities such as a bomb or exploding paint. According to their static electricity theory, the Hindenburg had become charged with static due to an electrical storm while a broken wire or a sticking gas valve leaked hydrogen into the ventilation shafts. The most likely mechanism for the spark starting the fire was electrostatic with the fire first appearing on the tail of the airship where it ignited the leaking hydrogen.

So is it finally case closed for what brought down the Hindenburg? Probably not because conspiracy theories are always much more fun than boring theories about static electricity. So perhaps the latest research should be viewed as just more evidence weighing in the direction of static electricity rather than “something else.”

Stansfield’s work has become the focus of the TV documentary “What Destroyed the Hindenburg” which aired on Channel 4 last week and will air again early next week (click here for the times). However, a quick search of YouYube reveals the whole documentary has (for now) been posted here by a user and not by documentary’s creators – meaning its probably not going to be up for very long!

A Great British Air Disaster

If you have ever wondered why commercial passengers planes have round windows, Channel 4 recently aired “A Great British Air Disaster,” an excellent documentary chronicling the rise and fall of the De Havilland Comet and by default, the fall of British aviation and manufacturing.

The De Havilland Comet was conceived during World War II as the world’s first passenger jet airliner and it was an instant hit with the public when it came into service in 1952. However and in the space of just four months in 1954, two aircraft blew up in mid-air killing all aboard. The ensuing investigation into what caused the crashes led to the birth of modern aircraft crash investigations, round windows becoming standard on all aircraft to prevent metal fatigue and ultimately to the rise of Boeing.

Both the Guardian and the Telegraph have reviews of “A Great British Air Disaster” and if you missed it the first time, its scheduled to air again on Friday, March 1, at 1:10 am and 2:10 am. If you don’t want to wait up that late, you might want to keep an eye on YouTube as someone is bound to upload the documentary on there.

However, it appears that the full episode of “Seconds From Disaster – Comet Air Crash,” another documentary dating from 2006 about the De Havilland Comet crashes, is posted on YouTube and is well worth watching:

Restoring a Mosquito bomber in New Zealand

The AOPA Pilot blot recently mentioned the Fighter Factory in Virginia will adding a flying restored de Havilland Mosquito KA114 bomber to its collection that was built with recovered parts and new tooling by Avspecs, Limited, at the Ardmore Airfield in Auckland, New Zealand. Avspecs happens to be owned by a husband and wife team who also made sure they did a photo and video shoot of the whole restoration process with the photos and videos posted on MosquitoRestoration.com.

In case you aren’t familiar with the history of the British conceived Mosquito, it first flew on the November 25, 1940 and soon outperformed all other Allied and Enemy aircraft. In fact, it was 23 MPH faster than the Spitfire and so versatile that it performed in every role (e.g. bomber, fighter, fighter bomber, night fighter, photo reconnaissance etc). However and due to their wooden construction, only a few of the 7,000 or so Mosquitos built have managed to survive.

So as you can imagine, restoring a Mosquito to airworthy status from parts sourced and recovered from all over the world was no easy feat as the following short video shows:

Nevertheless, here is a video showing the end result – a Mosquito being flown for the first time in at least 15 years:

Finally, the MRC Aviation blog in New Zealand has found and posted this video of what appears to be the same Mosquito being dismantled in preparation to be shipped to the States:

Digging up World War II aircraft in the British countryside

We have been following the story of one man’s quest to find dozens of buried and hopefully well preserved Spitfires in Myanmar (Burma) but a lengthy BBC News article has reported that there could be hundreds or even thousands of World War II aircraft still buried in the British countryside. More importantly, many of these aircraft are remarkably well-preserved while searching for and then digging them up is the hobby of hundreds of people across Britain – including Dave Stubley, the secretary and "general dogsbody" of the Lincolnshire Aircraft Recovery Group (LARG) as well as a self proclaimed "wreckologist."

Stubley estimates that a few thousand aircraft crashed in Lincolnshire because the area had enough airfields during the war to be nicknamed “bomber county.” And while many crashed aircraft were recovered or recycled, some would have hit the ground with such force that they buried themselves. In fact, Stubley believes that 10% of the crashed aircraft are still there in the ground being preserved by soil, oil and lack of air exposure.

The first step Stubley’s group takes to recover such an aircraft is to visit an area to talk to the older generation who might remember an aircraft crashing. Metal detectors are then used to narrow the search and then the group must get permission from landowners along with a licence from the MoD before digging up any fields. However, the MoD will usually not give licences to dig up sites where there might be human remains but there was a LARG excavation involving a Mustang where the American records were wrong and a body was found – bringing closure to the family.

The Protection of Military Remains Act 1986 also prevents recovery groups from contacting relatives of those killed but often its the families themselves who come forward seeking information. Moreover, the British Aviation Archaeological Council (BAAC) is now working on a database of crash sites which it will make available to the public to further help families piece together how their relatives died.

Unfortunately, souvenir hunting has become an issue with downed aircraft but LARG will display much of its recovered wreckage at Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre and the group has given additional pieces to other museums. The group has also recovered both US and German as many German bombers were downed on their way to attack the area. In other words, you don’t need to go all the way to Myanmar to dig up aviation history as there is still plenty buried right here in our own backyard.

Remembering Manchester United’s Munich air disaster

Both the BBC Wales and the Wales Air Forum have reported that former Manchester United player Kenny Morgans, who survived the Munich air disaster in 1958 that claimed the lives of eight of the club’s football players along with three staff members, has died at aged 73. Swansea-born Morgans had joined Manchester United on leaving school in 1955 and two years later, he made his first-team debut as an 18-year-old against Leicester City.

Wikipedia has a lengthy entry about the Munich air disaster which occurred when British European Airways Flight 609 crashed on its third attempt to take off from a slush-covered runway at the Munich-Riem Airport in Munich. Twenty of the 44 people on board died in the crash while three more later dies of their injuries.

As for Morgans, he was found unconscious among the wreckage by two journalists, five hours after the official search had been called off, and he was among the nine players and one staff member who survived the crash. Although two surviving players never played football again due to their injuries, Morgans recovered and continued his playing career. He left Old Trafford in 1961 after making 23 appearances and played the remainder of his career in his native Wales.

The Munich air disaster occurred after the pilots had attempted to take off twice but were forced to abort due to boost surging in the port engine. However, the Captain was afraid that they would become too far behind schedule and decided to make a third take-off attempt. By then, it had begun to snow and the aircraft skidded off the end of the runway, crashed into the fence surrounding the airport and continued across a road before its port wing was torn off by a house.

The West German airport authorities originally blamed the Captain by claiming that he had failed to de-ice the wings of the aircraft but eyewitnesses gave statements to the contrary. Eventually, it was established that the crash was caused by the build-up of slush on the runway – causing the aircraft to fail to achieve take-off velocity. The Captain’s name was eventually cleared in 1968.

The Munich air disaster could not have come at a worst time for Manchester United as the football club was trying to become only the third club to win three successive English league titles – a feat that would take it another 41 years to accomplish.

The Munich air disaster was also the subject of an Air Crash Investigations episode which can be viewed on YouTube in its entirety.

The Beagle Pup: A classic British built aircraft

Most general aviation pilots probably learned how to fly in a Cessna aircraft but had history been a little different, perhaps many pilots would have learned how to fly in British built Beagle B.121 Pups. A single-engined training and touring aircraft that could seat two to four passengers, the Beagle Pup was built by Beagle Aircraft Limited at the Shoreham Airport and Rearsby Aerodrome.

According to Wikipedia, Beagle Aircraft Limited had decided to build the Beagle Pup after conducting a market survey which revealed a global requirement for a two to four seat training and touring aircraft to replace aging Tiger Moths and Pipers used by flying clubs. The first prototype Beagle Pup flew at the Shoreham Airport on April 8, 1967 while the first delivery to the Shoreham Flying School was made on April 12, 1968.

The Beagle Pup proved to be popular with flying clubs and general aviation pilots around the world and by 1969, aircraft production had increased to one Pup per day that were then flown to either the Rearsby Aerodrome or Cambridge Airport for painting and finishing work. Deliveries were also made to owners as far afield as Australia as well as closer to home to Sweden and Switzerland. In addition, a special four seat version was built for the Iranian Civil Air Training Organisation.

However and before the Beagle Pup was built, Beagle Aircraft Limited’s parent company, Pressed Steel, had been absorbed into the British Motor Corporation. After a review of their involvement in light aircraft manufacturing, the British Motor Corporation requested financial help from the British Government which acquired Beagle Aircraft Limited in 1966. When the company needed more financial help, it was placed into receivership and after the Receiver failed to revive and sell it whole, its assets were ultimately disposed of.

Over 250 Beagle Pups were apparently on order but production stopped with the 152nd aircraft with some remaining nearly completed aircraft being finished in other locations. The last aircraft completed was G-BCGV (s/n B121-176) and it was first registered on June 17, 1974.

According to Wikipedia, Beagle Pups are still operated by the following clubs or organizations in the UK:

Derby Aero Club
Shoreham Flying School
SkySport UK
Starline Elms Coaches
The Dogs Flying Group, Sywell
Netherthorpe Airfield

So perhaps some of our readers have had a chance to fly one.

A quick Internet search also reveals an entire website dedicated to “Bob the Beagle,” a Beagle Pup that competed in a 1969 Britain to Australia Air Race flown by a husband and wife pilot team. “Bob” then spent much of his life in France after his owners moved there but today he is based at Hawarden and is still flying strong.