Post by Dave Homewood on Jun 30, 2022 23:32:15 GMT 12
From The Press, 23 November 1955
VAMPIRE JETS CRASH
Two Collide At 20,000 ft
ONE PILOT SAVED BY PARACHUTE
(New Zealand Press Association) WANGANUI, November 22.
The pilot of a Vampire jet plane was killed this afternoon in a collision with another Vampire at 20,000 ft during interception exercises north of Wanganui. The pilot of the other Vampire parachuted to safety.
The man killed was: PILOT OFFICER HENRY HALLEY VAN PAINE, whose father is Mr C. Haswell Paine, of 33 Palmerston street, Hamilton. The pilot who jumped safely into rough bush country in his first parachute descent is Pilot Officer Peter Brown, of Brooklyn, Wellington. His descent was observed by nearby farmers and scrub cutters, who brought him to a farmhouse.
The collision occurred at 12.50 p.m. Pilot Officer Brown’s aircraft crashed within 75 yards of Mr W. A. Frampton’s homestead at the end of the Tokomaru West road. The wreckage of Pilot Officer Paine’s aircraft was sighted by a Royal New Zealand Air Force plane searching the area shortly before 3 p.m. It was about two miles north of the point where the other Vampire crashed. Guided by the search plane, a ground party moved through rough country to the area. They found wreckage scattered over about five miles, and the remains of Pilot Officer Paine’s body, which were brought to Wanganui.
Pilot Officer Paine, who was in his early twenties, graduated last year from the Royal Australian Air Force College at Point Cook, Victoria.
Pilot Officer Brown told reporters that he was flying one of a formation of eight Vampires engaged in interception exercises. He was flying at a height of about 20,000 ft when there was a flash and he heard a bang. The next he remembered was floating down in his parachute. He could see men approaching him, and about 15 minutes after he landed the first man, Mr W. Tahana, reached him. He did not know what had caused the accident, he said. When he landed on the side of a steep hill, said Pilot Officer Brown, his parachute was entangled in a tree. He pressed the release knob and dropped to the ground.
Farmer’s Account
One of the earliest to meet Pilot Officer Brown was Mr Colin Frampton, who had ridden over on a horse. “We were sitting down at dinner when there was a large whoof like a peal of thunder,” said Mr Frampton.
“There was no noise for a while, and then another terrific bang as the wreckage of the Vampire struck the ground outside. My wife and I rushed out to see what had happened and could see a parachute floating down at a high altitude.”
Mr Frampton rushed to the top of a neighbouring hill, estimated the area in which the pilot was likely to land, and set off on horseback. Farmers on high ground on both sides of the lower reaches of the Wanganui river saw the Vampires manoeuvring and heard the explosion. Many of them watched Pilot Officer Brown’s parachute, which was visible for many miles.
Observers several miles away could see him hanging from the straps of his parachute, and newspapers and police were inundated with eye-witness accounts. Fifteen minutes after the crash rooftops in Wanganui city were crowded with office workers watching the remaining Vampires circling round the scene 12 miles from the centre of the city.
VAMPIRE JETS CRASH
Two Collide At 20,000 ft
ONE PILOT SAVED BY PARACHUTE
(New Zealand Press Association) WANGANUI, November 22.
The pilot of a Vampire jet plane was killed this afternoon in a collision with another Vampire at 20,000 ft during interception exercises north of Wanganui. The pilot of the other Vampire parachuted to safety.
The man killed was: PILOT OFFICER HENRY HALLEY VAN PAINE, whose father is Mr C. Haswell Paine, of 33 Palmerston street, Hamilton. The pilot who jumped safely into rough bush country in his first parachute descent is Pilot Officer Peter Brown, of Brooklyn, Wellington. His descent was observed by nearby farmers and scrub cutters, who brought him to a farmhouse.
The collision occurred at 12.50 p.m. Pilot Officer Brown’s aircraft crashed within 75 yards of Mr W. A. Frampton’s homestead at the end of the Tokomaru West road. The wreckage of Pilot Officer Paine’s aircraft was sighted by a Royal New Zealand Air Force plane searching the area shortly before 3 p.m. It was about two miles north of the point where the other Vampire crashed. Guided by the search plane, a ground party moved through rough country to the area. They found wreckage scattered over about five miles, and the remains of Pilot Officer Paine’s body, which were brought to Wanganui.
Pilot Officer Paine, who was in his early twenties, graduated last year from the Royal Australian Air Force College at Point Cook, Victoria.
Pilot Officer Brown told reporters that he was flying one of a formation of eight Vampires engaged in interception exercises. He was flying at a height of about 20,000 ft when there was a flash and he heard a bang. The next he remembered was floating down in his parachute. He could see men approaching him, and about 15 minutes after he landed the first man, Mr W. Tahana, reached him. He did not know what had caused the accident, he said. When he landed on the side of a steep hill, said Pilot Officer Brown, his parachute was entangled in a tree. He pressed the release knob and dropped to the ground.
Farmer’s Account
One of the earliest to meet Pilot Officer Brown was Mr Colin Frampton, who had ridden over on a horse. “We were sitting down at dinner when there was a large whoof like a peal of thunder,” said Mr Frampton.
“There was no noise for a while, and then another terrific bang as the wreckage of the Vampire struck the ground outside. My wife and I rushed out to see what had happened and could see a parachute floating down at a high altitude.”
Mr Frampton rushed to the top of a neighbouring hill, estimated the area in which the pilot was likely to land, and set off on horseback. Farmers on high ground on both sides of the lower reaches of the Wanganui river saw the Vampires manoeuvring and heard the explosion. Many of them watched Pilot Officer Brown’s parachute, which was visible for many miles.
Observers several miles away could see him hanging from the straps of his parachute, and newspapers and police were inundated with eye-witness accounts. Fifteen minutes after the crash rooftops in Wanganui city were crowded with office workers watching the remaining Vampires circling round the scene 12 miles from the centre of the city.
Thanks Roger.