Winter Hill air disaster
The Winter Hill air disaster occurred on 27 February 1958, when the Silver City Airways Bristol 170 Freighter G-AICS, traveling from the Isle of Man to Manchester, England, crashed into Winter Hill (also known as Rivington Moor) at a point several hundred yards from the Independent Television Authority's Winter Hill transmitting station.[1]
 A Bristol Freighter Mark 21 of Silver City Airways at Manchester Airport | |
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | 27 February 1958 |
| Summary | Controlled flight into terrain |
| Site | Winter Hill, England 53.629°N 2.513°W |
| Aircraft type | Bristol Type 170 Freighter |
| Operator | Silver City Airways |
| Registration | G-AICS |
| Flight origin | Ronaldsway Airport |
| Destination | Manchester Airport |
| Occupants | 42 |
| Passengers | 39 |
| Crew | 3 |
| Fatalities | 35 |
| Injuries | 7 |
| Survivors | 7 |
Thirty-five people died and seven were injured.[2] The ICAO report[3] stated that the accident occurred at 9:15 AM. At the time, the weather was so severe that none of the engineers working in the ITA transmitting station were aware of the crash.[4] Several feet of snow hampered rescue efforts, and a snow cat vehicle had to be diverted from the A6 to cut a path for emergency vehicles, even though the track had been cleared by people using spades just previously.
Background
The flight was a charter flight from Ronaldsway Airport on the Isle of Man to Manchester Ringway Airport. It was flying a group of mostly Motor Traders to visit the Manchester Exide Battery Factory and Manchester car show.[5]
Crash
The Silver City Airways Bristol 170 Freighter G-AICS, call sign "Charlie Sierra", was due to fly from Ronaldsway Airport, Ballasalla, on the Isle of Man to an aircraft reporting point at Squire's Gate, about 3 miles (4.8 km) from Blackpool. The aircraft was flown by Captain Cairnes at an altitude of 1,500 feet (460 m) due to low cloud and other air traffic in the Manchester area. After receiving clearance from air traffic control at Manchester Ringway Airport, Captain Cairnes flew Charlie Sierra inland to Wigan Beacon, a non-directional beacon in the Manchester Zone, which transmitted a recognition signal of "MYK" in Morse code on a frequency of 316 kHz and a range of c. 25 miles (40 km).[5] Due to a number of navigation errors in respect to the radio compass bearings and altitude readings, the Silver City Bristol Freighter crashed near the summit of Winter Hill, five miles (8 km) southeast of Chorley, Lancashire at 9:15 AM.
Passengers and Crew
Thirty-five of the passengers were killed, the majority of whom were connected with the Isle of Man motor trade. The three crew were among the seven souls who survived with injuries.
Investigation
An error by the first officer in tuning the radio compass to the Oldham Beacon frequency instead of the Wigan beacon one was the probable cause.
Sources
- Accident description at the Aviation Safety Network
- Alan Clark. "Bristol 170 Freighter Mk.21E G-AICS". Crash Sites in the Pennines. Peak District Air Accident Research. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
- ICAO Accident Digest, Circular 59-AN/54 (83–92)
- Survivors relive Winter Hill crash horror Retrieved on 31 January 2016
- Steve Poole Rough Landing or Fatal Flight. A history of aircraft accidents on, or over and around the Isle of Man (1999) (1st Edition) Manx Heritage Foundation Amulree Publications ISBN 1-901508-03-X