Oxford, MA. – April 26, 1961

December 2, 2025

Oxford, Massachusetts – April 26, 1961

     On April 27, 1961, a single-engine Navion airplane, (Reg. #N4850K), with four people aboard, took off from Hazleton, Pennsylvania, bound for Boston.  While in route, the plane crashed in a field on Federal Hill Road in Oxford.  According to a witness who was working in an adjacent field, the plane was flying low as if it was going to land, but the engine wasn’t running.  The plane missed some power lines and crashed nose first into the field. 

     Among the first to arrive were Oxford’s Chief of Police and a state trooper from the Charlton barracks.  They determined that the pilot and one passenger were deceased, and extricated the two rear seat passengers who were then transported to a hospital.  One of the passengers would later succumb to their injuries. 

     Sources:

      Webster Times, (Ma.), “Two Killed In Oxford Plane Crash Monday”, April 27, 1961   

Filed Under: Massachusetts - Civil Tagged With: ,

Dudley, MA. – December 19, 1927

November 30, 2025

Dudley, Massachusetts – December, 19, 1927   

50th Anniversary Of U.S. Air Mail Service
Issued May 15, 1968

     On the evening of December 19, 1927, U. S. Air Mail pilot C. P. Oleson took off from Boston with a plane full of Christmas mail bound for Hartford, Connecticut.  While in route he encountered severe headwinds and turbulence which reportedly buffeted the plane about “like a feather”.  Realizing the danger, Olsen attempted to land the plane at Dudley Airport but crashed while doing so.  The plane came to rest upside down with considerable damage to it.  Olsen, however, was able to free himself from the wreckage and discovered he was unhurt. 

     Olsen then made his way to a nearby home where he asked to use the telephone.  The mail was brought to the Webster, Mass. post office. 

     The plane was owned by the Colonial Transport Company and was valued at $11,000.   It had only been in service four weeks at the time of the crash.   

     Source:

     Webster Evening Times, (Ma.), “Mail Plane Crashes At Landing Field At Dudley Last Night”, December 20, 1927

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

Oxford, MA. – April 9, 1993

November 30, 2025

Oxford, Massachusetts – April 9, 1993

     On April 9, 1993, three men and a woman took off from Stratford, Connecticut, in a Piper 235, (N9349W), bound for Oxford, Massachusetts.  The plane landed safely at Oxford at 12:30 p.m., and the four people aboard went to a camper dealership on Route 20 in Oxford.  The group returned to the airport around 4:00 p.m. and made preparations to fly back to Connecticut. 

     At about 4:20 p.m. the aircraft took off with a tailwind and according to witnesses the plane appeared to lose power before banking to the left and crashing to the ground where it exploded in a ball of fire killing all aboard.

     Sources:

     The Times, (Webster, MA.), “Tailwind Noted In Crash”, April 14, 1993.

     Aviation Safety Network 

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

Oxford, MA. – January 14, 2002

November 30, 2025

Oxford, Massachusetts – January 14, 2002

      On January 14, 2002, a lone pilot took off from the Lawrence (Ma.) Municipal Airport in a rented Piper Cherokee bound for the Southbridge (Ma.) Municipal Airport.   While in route he became lost, and mistook the airport in Oxford, Mass., to be his destination.  

     The Oxford Airport runway was reported to be 2,000 feet long; 1,500 feet shorter that the runway at Southbridge.  As the pilot landed at Oxford, he came to realize he didn’t have enough room to stop, so he tried to abort the landing, but the plane’s landing gear clipped some trees at the end of the runway causing it to crash up-side-down 500 feet into the woods.   The aircraft was severely damaged but the pilot suffered only minor injuries.     

     Source:

     The Webster Times, (Ma.), “Small Plane Crash Case Of Mistaken Identity”, January 16, 2002. 

Filed Under: Massachusetts - Civil Tagged With: , ,

Oxford, MA. – February 27, 1983

November 29, 2025

Oxford, Massachusetts – February 27, 1983

     On the afternoon of February 27, 1983, two men in a single-engine airplane were making a landing at Oxford Airport when the pilot aborted the approach due to another aircraft suddenly appearing on the runway.  (The Oxford Airport was an “uncontrolled field”.) 

     As the pilot was making his “go around” the engine suddenly began to sputter and then stopped all together.   Realizing he couldn’t make the runway, he opted to make an emergency landing in an adjacent cornfield.  As he was approaching the field, the aircraft clipped a set of power lines causing it to crash nose first in the snow covered field.  The plane then skidded about 50 feet through the field before coming to rest.   

     The impact caused the wings to bend in such a way as to prevent the two men from exiting the plane.  Witnesses ran forward and assisted the men to escape through the windshield.  Both men were transported to a hospital with non-life threatening injuries.  

     Source:

     The Webster Times, (Ma.) “Pilot Gives Thanks For Help”, March 2, 1983. 

 

Filed Under: Massachusetts - Civil Tagged With: ,
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