As it Happened

Three belly landings in my Air Force days - pretty much run-of-the-mill stuff in a war situation. The aircraft involved were a Blenheim Mark IV, Baltimore Mk III and a Beaufighter. However, there was another accident which is forever etched in my mind. Let me tell you about it.

1st September 1941 piloting a Blenheim Mk I, carrying three crew, two passengers and a lot of equipment, I was to fly out of Aden to an up-country landing ground near Makulla in Arabia. On our take-off run, we were about to become airborne when an engine stopped, and so did my heart momentarily. I yanked the beast off the ground but it fell straight back. The wheels hit the sea wall and the plane nosedived into the water. On impact the Navigator, who was sitting on the bomb-aiming seat, was catapulted straight through the perspex. While he was flying solo, the aircraft flipped longitudinally onto its back, and the Nav was left behind in the water which was about five feet deep. The passenger sitting next to me escaped through the hole left by the Nav. I was trapped inside the cockpit for about three minutes and I thought I was going to drown! To my great and everlasting relief, I felt hands groping at my clothing as my passenger pulled me out through the same escape route.

Passenger number two, who had been sitting in the fuselage, commented later that he felt a heavy bump, and water appeared in the fuselage in great quantities. He wasn’t sure what was happening, but he thought it was rather unusual to be transporting so much water in the aeroplane.

All five persons suffered only minor cuts and abrasions.

Ron Edwards

Ron, I have been unsuccessfully trying to locate you for approval to reproduce your fascinating article. I have assumed you would not object but please get in touch if you have any objection and I will of course remove it. Peter Pickering