Unscheduled visit

[danwalker]

Hi everyone, I am doing a little research looking for information and/or leads to same about a small but significant incident that happend at my local airport. On 23rd March 1950 6 Fireflies and 3 Sea Furies landed at Onerahi airfield, Whangarei following arrester wire issues on board their carrier H. M. A. S Sydney operating off the Northland Coast. I have a photo of the aircraft on the ground presumed to be from the time that was published in the Northern Advocate back in 1992. Unfortunately it is erroneously captioned identifying the aircraft as Hawker Hinds and the year being 1942! My question is, does anyone have any knowledge of this incident including the identities of the aircraft or where I can find this information? I have read the Captians report but it does not go into a lot detail and the photo I have is a poor newsprint copy taken head on revealing no identifying features. Many thanks in advance. Daniel

[Dave Homewood]

AUST. AIRCRAFT DIVERTED TO WHANGAREI

(P.A.) WHANGAREI, March 23.

Six Firefly aircraft and three Hawker Sea Furies landed unexpectedly at the Onerahi aerodrome at 10.30 this morning because something had temporarily gone wrong with the aircraft-carrier, H.M.A.S. Sydney, about 40 miles from Whangarei.

The aircraft containing about 15 personnel left the ship about 7.30 this morning on exercises. They had made a substantial flight and had little fuel left. As a result the crews were faced with the difficulty of getting the required 100 octane petrol to take them back to their ship. A radio communication was established quickly between Onerahi and the ship and within a few minutes it was arranged that the petrol should be flown in from the ship. Later, however, this scheme was abandoned and it was arranged to rush the petrol from Auckland by road tanker. One aircraft had a slight mishap when landing. Apparently the starboard oleo, which supports a landing wheel, failed to function properly anti the plane tipped forward slightly bending two blades of the five-blade propeller and rendering the aircraft unserviceable.

GISBORNE HERALD, 24 MARCH 1950

[Dave Homewood]

ARRESTER FAULT ON CARRIER DECK STOPS LANDING OF PLANES

(P.A.) WHANGAREI. March 24.

The reason why fighter planes from the aircraft carrier. H.M.A.S. Sydney, landed on the Onerahi aerodrome yesterday was that a major defect in the arrester mechanism on the flight deck of the ship might possibly have resulted in damage to the planes. This risk, it was explained was not worth taking unnecessarily in peacetime.

GISBORNE HERALD, 24 MARCH 1950

[Dave Homewood]

STRANDED CARRIER AIRCRAFT RETURN

(P.A.) WHANGAREI. March 24.

To keep their rendezvous with H.M.A.S. Sydney somewhere between Cape Brett and the Poor Knight’s Islands eight war planes which were stranded at Onerahi yesterday took off from the ’drome at exactly 8.30 o’clock this morning. A radio-telephone message from H.M.A.S. Sydney stated that the last aircraft had “safely landed-on at 9.15 a.m."

One aircraft, a Sea Fury, which was slightly damaged while landing at Onerahi yesterday morning remains behind. It is being made serviceable by a party of maintenance ratings who arrived by road from Russell this morning.

GISBORNE HERALD, 25 MARCH 1950

[Dave Homewood]

TWO KILLED WHEN JEEP CAPSIZES

PARTY FROM H.M.A.S. SYDNEY

(New Zealand Press Association) WHANGAREI, March 28.

When their jeep crashed into a bridge at Punaruku, on the Whangarei-Russell road, last night, five men of the Royal Australian Navy were injured. Two died at the Whangarei District Hospital, to which all were taken.

Those killed were:

Senior Airman Mechanic Frank Brotherton; and

Chief Petty Officer James Nesbitt

The injured men are:

Chief Petty Officer G. W. Lawton, severe concussion and possible fracture of the skull; condition critical;

Corporal George Melrose, minor injuries;

Aircraftman Edward Barker, minor injuries.

The men were returning to the aircraft-carrier H.M.A.S. Sydney from the Onerahi aerodrome, where they had repaired a damaged fighter aeroplane. The jeep was towing a trailer.

The bridge where the accident occurred is at the bottom of a steep hill and on a sharp corner. As the jeep reached the bridge it apparently struck the railing and capsized.

Nesbitt, Brotherton, and Lawton, who were sitting in the back seat, were hurled over the bridge, landing on their heads 10 feet below the road at the side of the bridge. Melrose and Barker, who were in the front seat, were thrown against the windscreen and escaped serious injury. The funeral will be held at Russell on Thursday afternoon. The padre of the Sydney will officiate.


PRESS, 29 MARCH 1950

[Dave Homewood]

FUNERAL OF NAVY MEN IN RUSSELL

(P.A.) WHANGAREI, March 29.

The funeral of Chief Petty Officer J. Nesbitt and Senior Airman Mechanic F. Bretherton, who died from injuries suffered in the crash of a jeep while travelling from Onerahi to Russell on Monday, is to take place at Russell on Thursday afternoon. The padre of the aircraft carrier H.M.A.S. Sydney will officiate.

GISBORNE HERALD, 29 MARCH 1950

[Dave Homewood]

THIRD VICTIM OF JEEP SMASH SUCCUMBS

(P.A.) WHANGAREI, March 30.

The death occurred this morning of the third person to succumb to injuries suffered in the crash of a jeep carrying a naval party of five at a bridge on the Whangarei-Russell road on Monday night. He was:

Chief Petty Officer G. W. Lawton, aged 26, of H.M.A.S. Sydney.

He died in hospital without having regained consciousness.

GISBORNE HERALD, 30 MARCH 1950

[Dave Homewood]

INJURED MAN DIES

MEMBER OF CREW OF H.M.A.S. SYDNEY

(P.A.) . WHANGAREI, March 30.

Aircraftman G. W. Lawton, aged 26, died in the Whangarei District Hospital this morning. Aircraftman Lawton, who had been unconscious since his admission on Tuesday, was the third victim of the accident in which five members of the Royal Australian Navy were thrown from a jeep on the Whangarei-Russell road on Monday night.

The funeral of Chief Petty Officer Nisbet, one of the victims was postponed for two hours to allow Aircraftman Lawton to be buried with him.

The body of Chief Petty Officer Brotherton, whose wife desired burial in Australia, was taken from Russell by a naval barge to H.M.A.S. Sydney this morning.

ASHBURTON GUARDIAN, 31 MARCH 1950

[oj]

Thanks Dave for both a fascinating and horrible tale.
The peacetime risk of not wanting to carrier-land with faulty arrestor gear had very sadly ended with an undoubtedly worse outcome.

[danwalker]

Thanks Dave for the additional info. The tragic deaths of the three crew members are of course covered in the captain's report. What caught my attention was the Russell burials of two of the men. In peace time I would have expected all to have been returned home?

[Dave Homewood]

Yes, I found that a little bit of a surprise too.

[Mustang51]

I did not expect that outcome when I started reading the thread...........so sad.

[danwalker]

For your interest this is the Newspaper print of Fireflies and Sea Furies presumably at Onerahi March 1950, apologies for the poor quality. Are there any others out there? In regards to the obviously erroneous caption, I knew the late Tracey McKenzie and was fortunate enough to speak with him and view some of his photos from his service in the RNZAF maintenance units during WWII in NZ (including Onerahi) and the Pacific. He was very sharp and would not have confused a Firefly with a Hind. I am guessing there was a mix up with the photos and descriptions somewhere in the archives or publishing departments of the newspaper.


Onerahi Airfield March 1950 by Dan Walker, on Flickr

[Dave Homewood]

My goodness that caption is a doozey.

No. 20 (Army Co-operation) Squadron RNZAF was based there in 1942-1943, with Hawker Hinds and Harvards. They were the only unit to permanently be stationed there, and that was short-lived.

They were an RNZAF unit, not Army, but they worked with the Army to help train them to camouflage properly and to counter air attacks.

The Hinds did actually have Rolls Royce V-12 engines, Kestrels. But they were purchased from Britain, ex-RAF, and I am not sure that any of them served in Saudi Arabia.