Red Sails RAAF Aerobatic Team Crash(1960's)

I sense this is such a hurtful event for so many families. I sense this event affected the very fibre of the RAAF as an organisation, causing an impossible to reconcile conflict between loyalty to its officer class and its obligation to respect that the privelage of command demands honest leadership. So much is left unsaid about this event. How is it possible for a commander to lead subordinates into such a terrible doom? Maybe after half a century there is some space for honest reexamination. One thing that bugs me about this is the crash landing of Mosquito A52-303 in 1951, pilot officer AH Jones. In the court of inquiry for this event, the pilot was injured by striking his head against the rudder trim tab. To do this his body would need to be bent forward, in the same way as the crash test dummy of a car in the usual slow motion video of an air bag deploying. Prior to air bags in cars, the major, non fatal consequence of car crashes was brain injury, as the head struck parts of the car. I wonder how much this trauma may have affected the physical performance of Jones later, whether through spatial reasoning, migraines or whatever. The times called for “never complain, never explain,” in an Air Force officered by men still carrying shrapnel in their bodies. The armed forces generally are a dog once you are injured, abandoning you as a burden on the tax payer. So holding this in the back of the mind, how much did Jones brother officers protect him and push him, by an expectation to not underperform, to that fateful command over Sale ten years later? What do they mean by “condition m”? The report is full of allusions to medical conditions. What were the grumblings in Malaya? Was he fit? The RAAF does a great job in blaming dead pilots. I don’t think this was entirely the Commanders fault. He did it, but what was in the cockpit with him?

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Checked it.

Opens fine for me

If it does not work go to

http://www.adf-serials.com.au

then articles, research & other pages and it is under accidents and investigations at the bottom right of the page

Can you check that link?
“502 Bad Gateway”
Thanks,

All you need to know is here

http://www.adf-serials.com.au/dfs/The-Red-Sales.pdf

The Central Flying School at East Sale, Victoria, formed an aerobatic team in 1962, comprising four Vampire T 35s and called The Red Sales and gave its first public performance at the Royal Hobart Regatta in February 1962. Its existence was tragically cut short on 15 August 1962 when all four aircraft (A79-607, -628, -629 and -650) plunged into the ground near East Sale following a mid-air collision during a practice formation roll, killing six crew members (Crew names deliberately omitted)

Eight years later and I can provide the answer. I come from Maffra 10 miles north of Sale. The Red Sails used to fly over Maffra regularly. Yes they were the team before the Roulettes. The accident happened when they were practicing a barrel role. The leader was to close to the ground and mis judged the roll and going into the ground. The others followed him in.
As I remember a friend of our family had just passed along that road south of Sale (Longford to be exact). That’s all I can remember. There was Channel 9 News footage of the remains (relayed from Channel 10 Traralgon which is now Channel 8 I think.)
I nearly forgot. They were DeHavilland Vampires. Just before the change to Macchis. So they were replaced with Macchis.

I added the date of 1960’s as it had me wondering even by the name as I hadn’t heard of them before today.

Not important, but I thought I did that at 15.59? 🙂

I added the date of 1960’s as it had me wondering even by the name as I hadn’t heard of them before today.

I think your looking at the worst, I certainly never assumed there has been a recent fatal crash by this thread title.

sorry old chap, but I am with Trumper…whenever I see words ‘aircraft’ and ‘crash’ or ‘accident’ in a thread without a date my heart drops a few beats….its an old man thing! So please humour us with 4 extra digits to save a few heart beats!:)

:confused:Personally i had never heard of the display team.The only clue about vintage would be the use of Vampires,but i remember vintage formations of jets not long ago.The Vulcan flying is posted in historic but is actually very up to date,same as the B17 Liberty Belle at the moment.
It really isn’t too much to ask to have a date attached to the title.:)
Anyway getting back on topic,was the crash due to the lead plane being followed faithfully into a dangerous situation or actually some sort of collision.

I think your looking at the worst, I certainly never assumed there has been a recent fatal crash by this thread title.

This forum is about historic aircraft, which by no means excludes contemporary events, good or bad.

If the thread title includes reference to a crash, it should be indicated if the event was in the past. Furthermore, if ‘breaking news’ accident/incident is being reported, it is considerate to mention ‘no fatalities’ or similar, if this is the case, rather than just the alarming use of ‘crash’, which naturally will disturb many readers unneccessarily.

Its posted in the Historic Aviation forum, by it’s very nature it should be about an old crash.

😮 I wondered if the title could be amended to explain it is an old crash .
It certainly brings it home if something goes wrong in close formation 🙁