Avro 552A Viper G-ABGO near Coal Aston.
On 25th October 1933 this aircraft was to have been flown over Sheffield towing an advertising banner belonging to Messers John Walsh Ltd to advertise a "wise spending campaign". The aircraft was flown to the Coal Aston (or Norton) aerodrome site the day previous and had landed without incident. The aircraft was a three seat aircraft but only two were occupied when, at around 14.25hrs on 25th October 1933 the aircraft was ready to take off. The banner had been attached below the aircraft but a gusty wind was blowing. The aircraft took off and climbed to around thirty feet, it then immediately flipped onto it's back and fell into a hedge and ditch that bordered the edge of the aerodrome coming to rest upside down and partly overhanging Dyche Lane. The passenger / mechanic had left the aircraft just before it crashed, this spared him serious injury. The pilot remained in the aircraft as it crashed and was trapped upside down in the cockpit, he sustained serious injuries. The crash site was alongside Dyche Lane, this road formed the eastern border of the Coal Aston (or Norton) aerodrome. It appears to have crashed towards the southern end of this boundary near what was then Dyche Lane Farm. The farmer, Mt T.John Robinson, witnessed the aircraft falling and then crash, he ran to the site and managed to free the trapped pilot from the cockpit. The aerodrome site has been partly taken over by the St.James retail park and the area of Dyche Lane Farm is now within the Jordanthorpe development. I have yet to learn why the aircraft crashed but I would speculate that the wind had caused the banner to blow up and foul the tail of the aircraft causing control to be lost.
The aircraft was owned by Inca Aviation Co.Ltd, of 19 Grosvenor Place, London. This address is exactly the same as Richard Batson gave on his Royal Aero Club licence also in Summer 1933. Flight Magazine details the company when it was formed in July 1933 stating that they were "aerial and land surveyors, cartographers, hydrographers, photographers, carriers of passengers and goods by air, sea and land, owners, repairers, builders and manufacturers of aircraft, etc. Permanent director - Martin K. de Trairup, 19 Grosvenor Place." This person was declared bankrupt in January 1934 so that was probably the end of Inca Aviation. The crash involving G-ABGO may have been the catalyst for this.
Pilot - Mr Aymer Stritch Hutton.
Passenger / Mechanic - Mr Richard Batson.
Richard Batson was born on 2nd August 1905 at Norwich, Norfolk. He was awarded a Royal Aero Club Aviators' Certificate (Cert.No.11214) on 2nd July 1933 at the Herts and Essex Aeroplane Club.
Aymer Stritch Hutton was born on 4th November 1903 at Hawarden, Wales. He served in the RAF in the 1920s being granted a commission in the RAF in the early 1920s. He was confirmed in rank of P/O on 13th May 1923 but resigned his short service commission on 4th April 1925. He was awarded a Royal Aero Club Aviators' Certificate (Cert.No.11106) on 20th May 1933 at Hanworth aerodrome with National Flying Services Ltd. At that date he was working as an aeronautical engineer and living in Feltham, Middlesex. While I have not proved it I suspect his pilot's licence expired or was given up because of the injuries he sustained in this crash. He later re-took and was awarded the Royal Aero Club Aviators' Certificate (Cert.No.17704) on 11th April 1939 at the Bournemouth Flying Club and was a mining engineer living in Parkstone, Dorset at that date. During the Second World War he served in the Royal Navy.
The aircraft was a former RAF aircraft and carried the RAF serial H2323. It was first registered on the UK civilian register on 21th November 1919 as G-EAPR to A.V.Roe & Co Ltd., at Newton Heath and the aircraft was based at Woodford Aerodrome, Cheshire. This was the prototype Avro 552, the fuselage was later used as the basis for the Cierva C.8 autogyro and was later registered as G-EBTX on 9th September 1927 to the Cierva Autogyro Co.Ltd. with it being based at Hamble. It was later converted back to a winged aircraft and registered as G-ABGO on 13th November 1930 to Leslie George Anderson, London and based at Maylands, Essex. The aircraft was later sold to Inca Aviation Co.Ltd and registered by them on 3rd August 1933, being based at Hanworth, Middlesex. It was recorded as destroyed following the crash in October 1933. This crash appears to have broken the company finances as their director was registered as bankrupt soon after.