Smithfield, Rhode Island – July 12, 1938
On the afternoon of July 12, 1938, a pilot was giving a father and his 18-year-old daughter a ride in a bi-plane at the Smithfield Airport. The wind was unsettled that afternoon creating what the press termed “air pockets”. As the plane took off the pilot had trouble gaining altitude and the landing gear grazed the tops of two apple trees in an orchard adjacent to the field. Continuing on, the pilot was unable to climb higher than 150 feet, so he decided to turn back towards the airfield. As the plane approached the field, it appeared to “bump” in the air and loose altitude as it approached. It then crash-landed and continued on to plow into a stone wall at the edge of the field. The propeller was broken, and a wing and the landing gear were torn off. The pilot and the father received non-life threatening injuries, but the daughter escaped without injury.
Source:
Providence Journal, “Plane Hits Stones In Forced landing”, July 12, 1938, Pg. 8.
