1938 Kyeema Crash

The 1938 Kyeema crash occurred on the western face of Mount Dandenong, Victoria, Australia. On October 25, 1938, eighteen people were killed when the Kyeema, an Australian National Airways DC-2, VH-UYC crashed. The aircraft was in route to Melbourne from Adelaide. The disaster is blamed on a combination of the presence of a heavy fog and the use of an outdated navigational practice which relied solely on landmarks to determine position. During the ensuing investigation, it was decided that the pilot believed he was descending for a landing at Essendon but was grossly off course causing him to crash into the mountain. While not the first fatal accident in Australian aviation history it was unique because it was the first aircraft in radio communication up to the time of impact.

Those killed in the tragedy- including a parliamentarian, a party of barristers and solicitors, a group of wine industry executives, and a young couple on their honeymoon- were:
*Aircrew: Captain Alfred Webb, Junior Captain Allan Steen, Air Hostess Elva Jones, Cadet Pilot Philip Pring,
*Passengers: Leonard Abrahams KC, Alfred Gain, Hans Gloe, Stella Gloe, Gordon Goddard, Hugo Gramp, Thomas Hardy, Charles Hawker MHR, George Ling, James Massie, Vaughan Pate, Elizabeth Schrader, Lancelot Shirley, Sidney Hill Smith.

By Public demand a Royal Commission into the cause of the disaster was established, the Federal Government appointed an Air Accident Investigation Committee under the Chairmanship of Colonel T. Murdoch DSO, VCE with the public equiry commencing on October 30th, 1938. Because of the crash, regulations were passed which require Flight Checking Officers to monitor the flights of airplanes and advise on such things as position, weather, and alternate landing options. Also implementation of a 33MHz radio range system was recommended to provide pilots with accurate information on their course.

It was not until forty years after the crash that a memorial to the Kyeema and its eighteen passengers was created at the crash site.

External links

* [http://www.adb.online.anu.edu.au/biogs/A040617b.htm?hilite=hugo%3Bgramp Hugo Gramp Bio]
* [http://www.adb.online.anu.edu.au/biogs/A090234b.htm Charles Hawker Bio]
* [http://www.casa.gov.au/fsa/1998/nov/kyeema.pdf CASA Doc]

References

*AWA Ltd history files 17-19 King St Airport West, Victoria 1940.