Test Flying Memorial
"...and everywhere the
blue sky belongs to them
and is their appointed rest
and their native country"
- Samuel Taylor Coleridge
| Date | 22/10/1963 |
|---|---|
| Casualties | Lt Cdr Mike J. Lithgow OBE (Vickers-Armstrong deputy CTP), Capt Richard Rymer (Vickers-Armstrong TP), Mr Ben J. Prior (assistant chief aerodynamicist, Vickers-Armstrong), Mr C. J. Webb (assistant chief designer, Hunting Aircraft), Mr R. A. F. Wright (Vickers-Armstrong senior FTO), Mr G. R. Poulter (Vickers-Armstrong FTO), Mr D. J. Clark (Hunting Aircraft FTO). |
| Aircraft | BAC One-Eleven Series 200 G-ASHG |
| Took off from | Wisley, Surrey |
| Purpose of flight | Stability and handling assessment on approach to the stall with rearward C of G |
| Incident location | Near Chicklade, Wiltshire |
| Incident details | Aircraft entered deep stall from which recovery proved impossible; the aircraft descended near-vertically but with wings level and nose high. On impact the crew were killed and the aircraft destroyed, burning until just the outer wings and tail remained. |