Hyannis, MA. – March 25, 1945

December 23, 2020

Hyannis, Massachusetts – March 25, 1945

 

TBF-1 Avenger
U. S. Navy Photo

     On March 25, 1945, a navy TBF-1C Avenger, (Bu. No. 24329), was in the process of taking off from Hyannis when the aircraft lost power twice.  The pilot attempted to abort the take off and applied the brakes.  The aircraft went off the end of the runway onto soft ground where the wheels dug in and the landing gear was torn away.  The aircraft nosed over and skidded for an additional sixty feet before coming to rest.  There were no injuries. 

     Source: U. S. Navy accident report dated March 25, 1945. 

 

Filed Under: Massachusetts - Military Tagged With: , , , , ,

Hyannis, MA. – January 22, 1949

June 12, 2019

Hyannis, Massachusetts – January 22, 1949 

     On January 22, 1949, a navy FG-1D Corsair , (Bu. No. 92700), was returning to the Squantum Naval Air Station after a bomb training flight when the engine began to run roughly, and then began trailing black smoke.  The pilot was directed to land at the Hyannis Airport.  As he approached the airport the motor froze, and the pilot glided the aircraft down and made a successful wheels up landing.  The aircraft was extensively damaged but the pilot was unhurt.  

     Source:

     U. S. Navy accident report dated January 22, 1949

Filed Under: Massachusetts - Military Tagged With: , , , , ,

Hyannis, MA. – September 6, 1975

July 27, 2018

Hyannis, Massachusetts – September 6, 1975

     On the evening of  September 6, 1975, a civilian twin-engine Beechcraft was making its landing approach to Barnstable Municipal Airport when the aircraft struck a lighted instrument tower near the end of a runway and crashed in a parking lot several hundred yards away on Willow Street.  The plane exploded on impact and all three persons aboard were killed.  At the time of the accident, weather conditions were poor, and the pilot was attempting an instrument lending.   

     Sources:

     Boston Sunday Herald Advertiser,”3 Die In cape Plane Crash”, September 7, 1975, Section 2, page 25

     Boston Globe, “New England News In Brief-Cape Crash”, September 8, 1975, page 4

     Westerly Sun, (RI), Three Are Killed In Plane Crash”, September 8, 1975, page 3

     The South Middlesex News, photo and caption, September 7, 1975, page 14A

Filed Under: Massachusetts - Civil Tagged With: , , ,

Hyannis, MA. – May 11, 1944

May 16, 2018

Hyannis, Massachusetts – May 11, 1944 

Updated July 8, 2019

 

F4U Corsair
US Navy Photo

     On the afternoon of May 11, 1944, navy Lieutenant (Jg.) George E. Orenge was piloting an F4U Corsair, Bu. No. 02665, over Cape Cod, Massachusetts, when the aircraft suddenly caught fire while in flight.  Being over a populated area, Lieutenant Orenge opted to stay with the plane, but was unable to direct it towards an open area, or to make it to Hyannis Airport.  The plane crashed on Barnstable Road about 200 yards from Main Street in the town of Hyannis.  In the process it struck an elm tree and broke in two, pitching Lieutenant Orenge, still strapped to his seat, from the cockpit.  As the aircraft came to rest and was consumed by flames, Lieutenant Orenge landed on the sidewalk in front of 62 Barnstable Road.   

     The homeowner of 62 Barnstable Road, Vernon Coleman, happened to be outside and witnessed the crash.  He later told a reporter from the Cape Cod Standard Times, “I looked up and saw the plane sort of wavering with the motor on fire.” 

     Lieutenant Orenge was transported to Cape Cod Hospital, but remarkably, he’d only suffered some minor bumps, scrapes, and bruises. 

     The cause of the accident could not be determined due to total destruction of the aircraft.  

     It was also reported that he flew another aircraft later in the day.   

F6F Hellcat
U.S. Navy Photo

     This crash wasn’t the only one of Lieutenant (Jg.) Orenge’s  naval career.  On November 5, 1943, he was piloting an F6F-3 Hellcat, (Bu. No. 65895), when a tire blew out on landing at the Quonset Point Naval Air Station in Rhode Island.  The aircraft went off the runway and struck a truck.  The aircraft needed extensive repairs, but Lieutenant (Jg.) Orenge suffered only minor injuries.

     Sources:

     Cape Cod Standard Times, “Pilot Who Survives Hyannis crash, Goes Aloft Again”, May 12, 1944      

     U. S. Navy accident report #44-14042 dated May 11, 1944

     U. S. Navy accident report #44-9523, dated November 5, 1943.             

Filed Under: Massachusetts - Military Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,
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