Branford, Connecticut – July 12, 1950

     On July 11, 1950, a Navy twin-engine trainer aircraft with three officers on board took off from Virginia bound for the Quonset Point Naval Air Station in Rhode Island.  While passing over Connecticut the plane’s engines began to fail, and the commanding officer ordered a Lieutenant (Jg.) to bail out.  Why he did so was not explained in the press. Perhaps it was to lighten the weight of the aircraft.  In any case, the lieutenant bailed out and landed safely. 

     Meanwhile, the plane continued to lose altitude and crash-landed in a field in the town of Branford near the Guilford town line.  The plane came to rest in a drainage ditch and was partially submerged.  Fortunately neither man aboard was injured. 

      Source:

     Providence Journal, “Plane Crash Lands”, July 13, 1950, pg. 13.