Shirley Massachusetts Plane Crash | New England Aviation History

Shirley, MA. – January 30, 1957

November 6, 2025

Shirley, Massachusetts – January 30, 1957

De Havilland L-20 Beaver
U. S. Army Photo

On January 30, 1957, a U.S. Army de Havilland Canada L-20A “Beaver” aircraft with three servicemen aboard was making its final approach to land at Fort Devens when it crashed about 1.5 miles from the airfield. The aircraft came down in a dense wooded area north of Rt. 2A near Kittredge Road in the town of Shirley.

Two of the men aboard perished in the accident. They were identified as:

Captain Clifford D. Tresidder, 26, of Minnesota. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/120079757/clifford-d-tresidder

1st Lieutenant Richard B. Collett, 24, of Pennsylvania. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/61190970/richard-bartholemew-collett

The third man aboard suffered burns and a broken collar bone and was transported to Fort Devens Hospital. He later recovered from his injuries.

At the time of the accident the aircraft was taking part in training exercises.

Sources:

The Public Spirit, (Ayer, Mass.), “Military Services For Army Crash Victims”, February 7, 1957.

www.findagrave.com

Aviation Safety Network https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/168124

Shirley, MA – August 30, 1936

March 15, 2016

Shirley, Massachusetts – August 30, 1936

On August 30, 1936, an Army Air Corps 2nd Lieutenant took off from Groton, Massachusetts, after signaling to his family that he intended to land at Fitchburg-Leominster Airport. (How this signal was accomplished was not explained in the investigation report.) From Fitchburg, his family was to drive him back to his home in Groton.

The Lieutenant was piloting an O-1G observation aircraft, (Ser. No. 31-476). As his family drove in their car, the Lieutenant circled above monitoring their progress. At about 1:00 p.m. he saw the family car pull into an open field in the northern part of the town of Shirley, and the occupants got out and signaled the pilot. Realizing there had been a misunderstanding, the Lieutenant glided down over a ravine at the edge of the field to signal for his family to drive on. As he was doing so, he failed to notice a 75 foot tall tree looming ahead, and slammed into it about twenty feet from the top. The plane spun around and crashed to the ground roughly 200 feet away.

Although the plane was a total loss, the pilot survived.

Source: U.S. Army Air Corps Technical Report Of Aircraft Accident, dated September 1, 1936.