On 14th May 1938 this aircraft was being flown from Newcastle to Liverpool with the planned route west from Newcastle to pick up the west coast and then follow it down to Liverpool.
The weather in the area of Keswick at the time was reported as drizzling with low cloud down to around 1000ft. At just after midday the aircraft was heard flying west over Threlkeld
towards Keswick. It was thought that as the aircraft approached Latrigg the hill was partly shrouded in cloud, when the pilot got close to it he realised the aircraft was flying
towards it and pulled the aircraft up sharply to avoid it. This sharp use of the flying control caused part of the tail to break away and the aircraft then dived into the ground
out of control. The aircraft crashed at around 800ft above sea level into woodland in the area of Brundholme Ghyll. All three men on board died and all were pilot-members of the Newcastle Aero Club.
Pilot - Mr Samuel Smith. aged 32. Buried All Saints Cemetery, Newcastle upon Tyne.
Passenger - Mr Robert Gold Ratcliffe, aged 26. Buried West Road Cemetery, Newcastle upon Tyne.
Passenger - Mr Norman Tennant Ayton, aged 30, of Wickham, Newcastle. Burial location unknown.
Samuel Smith's family owned the Ringtons Tea company. He was born on 8th July 1905 at Leeds, Yorkshire and worked for the family company. He gained his Royal Aero Club certificate (Cert.No.13991) at the Newcastle Aero Club on 26th June 1936. Four days later on 30th June 1936 Samuel Smith was the pilot of Gipsy Moth G-EBYV on a flight over the Weardale area when he became lost in poor weather, while force landing the aircraft crashed at Glebe Farm, Medomsley, near Consett, Co.Durham, he escaped serious injury but the aircraft was destroyed. On 6th March 1937 he crashed Tiger Moth G-AELA "The Ringtonian" near Newcastle aerodrome and again was unhurt. In the week before the fatal accident near Keswick it was reported in his inquest that he crashed a (unidentified) Newcastle Aero Club aircraft. Vega Gull G-AFGU was registered to Samuel Smith, Rington's Ltd on 19th April 1938 - he had been given the Vega Gull by his father in the weeks before the accident at Keswick. I thank Mr D.Wood for kindly supplying a photograph of his gravestone.
Norman Ayton was born on 30th June 1907 in Newcastle. He gained his Royal Aero Club certificate (Cert.No.15395) at the Newcastle Aero Club on 10th August 1937.
Robert Ratcliffe was born on 7th February 1912 in Newcastle. He gained his Royal Aero Club certificate (Cert.No.15060) at the Newcastle Aero Club on 20th May 1937.
