Tiger moth incident at Headcorn

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20 years 9 months

Posts: 645

The gold coloured tiger has come to grief in the hedge on the northern boundary of the main runway. Damage looks considerable, wings ripped back but the aircraft remains upright. A crane is recovering the aircraft as I type this.
Eyewitnesses say it happened this morning.
Does anyone know if the people involved are ok?

Original post

Member for

20 years

Posts: 3,902

Sounds unfortunate, but hopefully not too damaging to life and limb.

Lets face it, who amongst us has not crashed a Tiger Moth at Headcorn?
Mine was in June 1997, and happliy was another running along the ground accident rather than all the unpleasant plummeting that one reads about.

Tiger Moths usually crash quite nicely, with lots of crumpling and splintering to absorb the energy. Just yesterday I flew with a fellow who spun from 300 feet a few years ago, and though a bit bashed and bruised, was up and about not too long afterwards. Got to credit the Chiltern Air Ambulance for that happy outcome as well.

Member for

20 years 9 months

Posts: 645

Sounds unfortunate, but hopefully not too damaging to life and limb.

Lets face it, who amongst us has not crashed a Tiger Moth at Headcorn?
Mine was in June 1997, and happliy was another running along the ground accident rather than all the unpleasant plummeting that one reads about.

Tiger Moths usually crash quite nicely, with lots of crumpling and splintering to absorb the energy. Just yesterday I flew with a fellow who spun from 300 feet a few years ago, and though a bit bashed and bruised, was up and about not too long afterwards. Got to credit the Chiltern Air Ambulance for that happy outcome as well.

It certainly looked more like the result of a ground accident rather than a plummeting one. There was also a considerable cross wind when I was there, though fellow resident moth CDC seemed to be coping well with the conditions.

Hopefully they can throw some string and glue at the old girl and she'll be up again in no time.

Member for

19 years

Posts: 2,106

OO that looks nasty! glad occupants are ok. Trouble with these old girls is that the bits are getting harder to come by and more and more expensive!!
All the time that they are on a CofA it get harder and harder to rebuild them.
Had my heart in my mouth when i saw the thread title, i rebuild CDC a couple of years back and worried she had come to grief!!!:eek:
Im supprised this isnt in the historic section!!

Member for

20 years 9 months

Posts: 645

OO that looks nasty! glad occupants are ok. Trouble with these old girls is that the bits are getting harder to come by and more and more expensive!!
All the time that they are on a CofA it get harder and harder to rebuild them.
Had my heart in my mouth when i saw the thread title, i rebuild CDC a couple of years back and worried she had come to grief!!!:eek:
Im supprised this isnt in the historic section!!

Good point, I guess it could fall in both catergories? I was at Headcorn and in GA mode I suppose!

Fantastic job on CDC by the way, I've grown up with Headcorn on my doorstep and the place wasn't quite the same while she was away.
Am I right in thinking SKP is also undergoing rebuild at the moment?

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20 years

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Hope I haven't confused things here.

The photo is from 2002, the occassion of my friend's unfortunate spin, as per my post.

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19 years

Posts: 2,106

Hi Andy, realised that this morning when i heard it was G-ADGT:(
Thanks for the Triplane pic by the way:)

SKP was due to come after CDC, plans changed and nothing happened so as far as i know its still in bits in the hangar at Headcorn:(

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20 years

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Bloody H*ll, what an amazing sequence of photos!

Will be in Daily Mail by Wed I reckon.

It looks like an audition for Vic Norman's Crunchie Flying Circus....

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20 years 9 months

Posts: 645

Looking at those pictures, that is almost exactly how imagined that it happened. The cross wind was surely a major factor. :(
Am i right in thinking this is the second Tiger Moth linked to the Tiger Club in the last few years that has had a prang?
I'm sure the silver G-ANJA got into a spot of bother a year or two ago.

It's a shame to hear SKP is still in kit form, I wonder why this is?

Blue Max, with your experience, judging by the photos do you think G-ADGT is repairable? I do hope so.

Member for

19 years

Posts: 2,106

It will certainly be a right off as far as the insurance Co is concerned.
The answer is that anything is repairable if you throw enough money at it!
I do hope DGT get rebuilt, its an old friend and has alot of history.

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18 years 9 months

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.....it'll buff out.

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17 years 6 months

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Looking at it positively. There isn't anything there that someone hasn't already fixed before.

Like 'The Blue Max' I hope that someone has the heart to take 'Gadgit' on.

Perhaps now is the time for a rebuild back into her original black and red Brooklands Flying School livery?

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20 years 5 months

Posts: 10,625

Some wood glue and gaffa tape and jobs a good un

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13 years 8 months

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The majority of SKP is still locked away in a container, parts of her though have been used to keep CDC, DJT and until her demise NJA flying.

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19 years

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Looks like DGT has SKP's tailplane and nose bowl on it!!!!

Tailplane might be still ok i guess:rolleyes:

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15 years 5 months

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The uncle of a good friend made his first RAF training flight in G-ADGT at Sywell in 1939. Sadly he was killed in action flying a Hurricane over Essex in September 1940.
This aircraft would have helped train many BoB pilots so it certainly does have some history!

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13 years 8 months

Posts: 2

Everything is repairable, even if you only have the serial number plate and a handful of parts to start with, but at what cost. For now it's up too the Tiger Club committee have the will to do it and most of all the ability to raise the finances as it will be more cost effective to just replace her with another aircraft.