North Kingstown, Rhode Island – June 10, 1955
Douglas Skynight
U. S. Navy Photo
On June 10, 1955, two men, one a navy officer and the other a civilian, took off from the Quonset Point Naval Air station in a twin-engine Douglas F3D-2 Skynight, (Bu. No. 125866), for the purpose of a test flight after an engine overhaul. The pilot brought the plane up to 15,000 feet where one of the engines suddenly exploded and caught fire. He tried to make it back to Quonset on one engine but the flames grew worse and the pair were forced to eject. Both men suffered burns during the ejection process but landed safely. Meanwhile the plane came down in a wooded area off Saunderstown Road in the Allenton section of North Kingstown. Hundreds flocked to the crash site clogging roads with their cars and hindering firefighting efforts. There were no injuries to anyone on the ground.
Source:
Evening Bulletin, “Jet Explodes Over Quonset: Two Parachute To Safety”, June 10, 1955, pg. 1.
