5 fatalities

1973-09-10: Lockheed C-130 Hercules (XV198) — Royal Air Force - RAF — Colerne AFB, United Kingdom

Colerne AFB, United KingdomTakeoff (climb)

On September 10, 1973, a Lockheed C-130 Hercules (registration XV198) operated by Royal Air Force - RAF was involved in an aviation accident near Colerne AFB, United Kingdom during takeoff. 5 people were killed. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: Failure of the engine n°2 for unknown reasons while the engine n°1 was off for training purposes. This summary draws on records from the Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives (B3A); 8 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.

Sourcesthe Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives (B3A)Primary reportUpdated 1781232298Data APIEditorial standards

A training flight at RAF Colerne crashed after the second engine failed during a touch-and-go maneuver with engine one intentionally off. All five crew members were killed.

Incident

A crew conducting a local training flight at RAF Colerne was performing touch-and-go maneuvers. During the initial climb, with engine number one intentionally shut down for training purposes, engine number two failed. The aircraft rolled to the left and crashed in flames in a wooded area located a few hundred yards beyond the end of the runway. The aircraft was destroyed.

Crew Details

The five crew members on board were Squadron Leader Anthony Barratt, Flight Lieutenant Douglas Mills, Flight Lieutenant Stuart Fraser, Sergeant Peter Coate, and Leading Mechanic Walter Natt. All were killed in the accident.

Investigation

The official investigation determined the probable cause of the accident to be failure of engine number two for unknown reasons while engine number one was intentionally off for training purposes. No further details were provided regarding the cause of the engine failure.