Plane crash at Shoreham Kent 1934

Paulmcmillan You are a star. Thank you very much for that information

I would suggest that it may be D7808 which was HAS (Home Aircraft Depot) 1.27 then 207 Sqn 1927. PD Ascot, AD Aboukir; 4 FTS Abu Sueir 3.28-1-29

207 Sqn were on DH9a at Eastchurch at the time

Chichester Observer – Wednesday 22 June 1927 provides detail Page 7

Incident Date Confirmed: Friday 17th June 1927

Tangmere’ Plane Damaged

Hits Telephone Pole at Shoreham
Forced to land though engine trouble a plane form Tangmere Aerodrome alighted safely in a field at Shoreham on Friday night, but there was not sufficient room for it to pull up, and a wing struck a telephone pole doing considerable dame. The Pilot was unhurt.

I can’t tell you the aircraft but I can date the accident

Two photos of the incident appear on Page 4 of the Worthing Herald – Saturday 25 June 1927 though they are very dark
One picture is exactly the same as the one posted

It gives some more info with captions

R.A.F. PLANE DOWN AT SHOREHAM

The scene of the RAF crash at Shoreham, showing the partly demolished hoarding and the telegraph pole which broke of the wings of the machine. Members of the RAF from Tangmere can be seen dismantling the plane

Another view of the crash showing the propeller (left). and mechanics disentangling the broken wing from the telegraph pole. The pilot, who was in the ‘plane alone, was uninjured

It very much looks like Shoreham high ground including that distinctive tree line, the school is on the hill just to the right out of shot I would say.
its taken looking North.
I am guessing at this stage it was just a field with a few buildings

Thanks for all your thoughts .I found the photo on e-bay with the message that the original owner of the photo had written ‘Taken on Shoreham Road’ on the back . I assumed it meant Shoreham by Sea,which would have been interesting to me but on investigating found that nothing matched .Shoreham Kent seemed to be the answer until I read the above analysis of the photo.I have made a quick search for other crash sites but have found nothing that fits.

If local I would imagine one of the Eastchurch Machines

What is the source of the ordinal photo ? Even I’m the late 1920’s people mobility was low so if cams from local source to Airspeed crash maybe other aircraft crashed in same local

J7802 is the only one which remotely matches: collided with an Avro 504N at Digby. Might explain the flat caps and whippets (ish) but too hilly?

The 780 number must narrow it down surely?

My god there must of been some drag !

Some cracking flat caps: Yorkshire maybe? Not the incident that relates to the query but it would be interesting to know more about the DH.9A incident in that photo.

From the stockings, above-the-knee skirt, and cloche hat on the woman visible I’d suggest this is late 1920s.

Adrian

The aircraft that matches the crash description in 1934 was Courier G-ACSY, the photograph is of a biplane possibly a DH 9.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1934_London,_Scottish_%26_Provincial_Airways_Airspeed_Courier_crash
Richard

The aircraft is a DH 9a. Possibly J7805 in 1929. No record of such an incident but most of the batch were either at Duxford, Eastchurch or abroad.

John

Might I politely suggest a DH9A from the RAF J780something series? Looks repairable too.

Its obviously a biplane, & a fighter/bomber type as it is fitted with a scarff ring. the number 780 is visible on the aft end of the fuselage, so presumably an RAF type. Don’t recognise the engine cowling though.

The clothes look older too. Could it be a photograph of an earlier accident with some sloppy editing?

Another thing that’s odd is that the incident pictured looks pretty survivable too.

Moggy