Bulldog 04/01/33

[davew]

Does anyone have a note of the serial No of the machine that crashed at Miss Marriage's Farm, Norton Heath, Ongar please.

The pilot, who was killed, was JL Armstrong of 111S.

TIA

DaveW

[Errol Martyn]

Dave,

From my 'For Your Tomorrow - A record of New Zealanders who have died while serving with the RNZAF and Allied Air Services since 1915 (Volume One: Fates 1915-1942)':

Wed 4 Jan 1933
England
Test flight Service trials
111 Squadron, RAF (Hornchurch, Essex - Fighting Area, Air Defence of Great Britain)
Bristol Bulldog IIIA ‘R5’ - three of the Squadron’s pilots arrived at the RAF Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment, Martlesham Heath, Suffolk, to collect prototype Bristol, Gloster, and Vickers fighters for trials at Hornchurch. Flying back to base they dived and pulled up into a Prince of Wales feather manœuvre, during which the Bulldog disintegrated and crashed at Norton Heath, near Chipping Ongar, killing the pilot. R5 was a manufacturer’s designation, no RAF serial having been allocated.
Pilot: Fg Off John Laurance ARMSTRONG, RAF - Age 26.

And Amendments section of Vol Three (Biographies & Appendices):

p58; ARMSTRONG, J L – the crash occurred on Miss Marriage’s farm. Buried at Hornchurch, but in 1934 exhumed and removed to New Zealand for burial at Mangatera, Dannevirke.

Errol

[paulmcmillan]

Photo of R5 here:

http://www.flightglobal.com/pdfarchive/view/1950/1950%20-%200333.html?search=Bristol%20Bulldog%20IIIA

[davew]

Errol,

many thanks for the serial which has allowed to look a bit further. There is a brief reference in Putnam's 'Bristol Aircraft' which dates the incident 30/3/1933, but I am sure that must be the date of the write off. The Times archive confirms 4 January.

Paul

thanks for the link. The site is down at the moment so will look later.

regards

DaveW

[Errol Martyn]

David,

'R5' and Armstrong's accident are detailed in David Luff's 'Bulldog: Bristol Bulldog Fighter', pub by Airlife 1987.

Errol

[paulmcmillan]

Out of interest what were the Vickers and Gloster types being evaluated

I assume the Gloster was the SS19 (which turned into the Gauntlet) - I can only assume the Vickers type was the Vickers Jockey - However J9122 crashed sometime in July 1932 - So did they build another one? or was it fixed?

Paul

[davew]

Thanks again Errol, I have just retrieved the book from the loft.

DaveW