ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 137407
This information is added by users of ASN. Neither ASN nor the Flight Safety Foundation are responsible for the completeness or correctness of this information.
If you feel this information is incomplete or incorrect, you can submit corrected information.
| Date: | Monday 27 January 1969 |
| Time: | |
| Type: |  Hawker Siddeley Harrier GR.1 |
| Owner/operator: | Hawker Siddeley Aviation Ltd |
| Registration: | XV743 |
| MSN: | 712006 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Dunsfold Aerodrome, Dunsfold, Alford, Surrey -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | Take off |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | Dunsfold Aerodrome, Dunsfold, Alford, Surrey [EGTD] |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources |
On 27 January 1969 Hawker Harrier XV743 was being flown at Dunsfold Airfield by Maj. Charles R. Rosburg of the US Air Force. He was one of two pilots (the other being Maj. K.J.Mason) from Edwards AFB, California, who were evaluating the Harrier on behalf of the USAF. The Harrier took off vertically but, whilst transitioning into horizontal flight, Maj. Rosburg lost lateral control. The Harrier rolled to starboard but Maj. Rosburg failed to correct the roll. Some twelve seconds after take off and at ninety knots, the Harrier was only eighty feet above the ground and at 90º to the horizontal. Rather than trying to correct the roll and re-achieve a horizontal attitude, Maj. Rosburg fired the ejector seat. Unfortunately, by virtue of the attitude of the Harrier, he ejected horizontally, landed heavily and suffered fatal injuries. He was rushed to hospital in Guildford but died shortly after arriving there.
The Harrier lost a wing on impact with the ground, on which it burst into flames and, despite the efforts of the fire service, was destroyed. However what remained when the fire was extinguished was transferred to the RAE at Farnborough for investigation, in order to assist the Board of Enquiry which sat subsequently. Its verdict was that:
"Lateral control of the aircraft was lost because left side-slip developed to a value which, combined with the effective incidence, generated aerodynamic rolling movements to the right which were greater than the total available roll control power."
Its conclusion was that Maj. Rosburg would have been unable to correct the roll, and return to a horizontal attitude, even if he had tried. Subsequently the Harrier was modified to take account of lessons learned from Maj. Rosburg's crash.
The demise of XV743 and Maj. Rosburg is well told by Christopher Budgen in 'Hawker's Secret Cold War Airfield : Dunsfold : Home of the Hunter and the Harrier', in which he says:
"It was perhaps ironic that, even if the ejection had been successful, Rosburg would likely still have died due to a very deep gash to his throat caused by the flailing oxygen-mask connection which should have been restrained by his flight clothing and by the ill fitting helmet, borrowed from Mason [the other USAF pilot charged with evaluating the Harrier], which he could not fasten under his chin".
A replacement Harrier - serial XW630 was added to the production contract as a replacement.
Sources:
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Harrier_Jump_Jet_family_losses
2. http://web.archive.org/web/20161217162442/http://www.ejection-history.org.uk:80/aircraft_by_type/harrier/harrier.htm
3. https://www.pprune.org/military-aircrew/284818-harrier-documentary-discovery-turbo.html
4. http://www.ukserials.com/losses-1969.htm
5. http://harriersig.org.uk/reference/harrierreferencev1105.pdf
6. http://www.radarmalvinas.com.ar/09FEB%20BRIT%20HARRIER/5MAY%20HAR-PROD%20traba.pdf
7. https://sussexhistoryforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=19317.0
8. https://air-britain.com/pdfs/military/Crashes_in_the_South_East.pdf
9. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunsfold_Aerodrome#Post-war_use
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 14-Jul-2011 01:13 | Dr.John Smith | Added |
| 15-May-2013 16:51 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Departure airport, Source, Narrative] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
The Aviation Safety Network is an exclusive service provided by:
Quick Links:
| ASN Home | Send Correction / Feedback |
| FSF Home | Disclaimer | Copyright |
| Contact Us | Privacy Policy |
| Press / Media |
CONNECT WITH US:
©2024 Flight Safety Foundation