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Registration
or Serial:
L7949
Operator: Royal Air Force
(No. 12 Elementary Flying Training School)
Operating Base: RAF Ayr (later renamed, Prestwick); RAF 44 Grp. Transport; RN HMS
Gannet.
Base
Location: Ayr (Heathfield)
Aerodrome (HMS Wagtail), Ayr, Scotland.
Current
Airport Status: Operational Civil Airport, Scottish Air
Traffic Control Centre, & MATO (Military Air Traffic Control).
Current
Airport Name:
Glasgow (Prestwick) International Airport (EGPK)
(Principal airport data courtesy of
John Woodside,
A
Catalogue of UK Airfields)
Aircraft Type Nickname: Faithful Annie
Aircraft Type & Background
The Avro
Anson was an adaptation of the civilian Avro 652 in use by Imperial
Airways.
The Anson
was the first aircraft in RAF service with a retractable
undercarriage. The aircraft was flown initially by No. 48 Squadron
of RAF Coastal Command.
The Anson
was used for coastal reconnaissance and maritime patrol; and,
latterly, for crew training, light transport, and communications
purposes. Among crew members, however, the Anson was considered to
be a cold, draughty and very noisy aircraft.
Although
the Anson was solidly-built and reliable, it was nevertheless slow
and vulnerable to attack. For this and other reasons, it was
inevitable that the Anson would be replaced—as indeed it was, with
the Lockheed Hudson bomber.
Later
generations of Ansons (the Avro Anson C.19 series) remained in use
with the RAF until 1968.
Usually,
Mark I Ansons were powered by two 350hp Armstrong Siddeley
Cheetah radial engines. Occasionally, however, other types would be
substituted. The aircraft had a top speed of about 188 mph (164
knots or 303 km/h) at 7,000 ft (2,100 m).
Aircraft Construction
Rectangular welded steel tubing, spruce and plywood covering, with Bakelite and plywood wings.
Aircraft Accident Details
This
aircraft departed from the Elementary Flight Training School at RAF Ayr
(Heathfield) Aerodrome (now, Prestwick Airport). The EFTS
used both Avro Ansons and Fairey Battles for flight training
purposes.
Anson
L7949 is understood to have been on a flight from Prestwick to RAF
Newcastle. However, while flying over the Renfrewshire hills, the
pilot—Lt. Cmdr. John Charsley RM—encountered low cloud and mist.
Unable to establish his true bearings, he flew into the hilly ground
in the proximity of Lairdside Hill.
Remarkably, all members of the crew survived the impact. These were:
the pilot, Lt. Cmdr. Charsley; Hubert Jordan, Percival Davidson, and
William Nichol.
After the
accident, Lt. Cmdr. Charsley set out to seek help. Soon, he came to Muirfauldhouse Farm, a short distance E of the crash site.
There, he managed to raise the alarm, and assistance was soon on its
way from the nearby village of Lochwinnoch, and also from the
nearest RAF station.
Crash
details are based on information provided by Clyde Muirshiel
Regional Park, Rangers Service.
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Accident Date
19
September 1938
Accident
Site
Lairdside Hill
(vicinity
of).
Region: Renfrewshire
Nearest
town or village: Kilbirnie
or Lochwinnoch
This aircraft crashed in the
vicinity of Lairdside Hill (W of Lochwinnoch, Renfrewshire).
The fragmented wreckage still remaining onsite can be seen
in the photos below.
OS Grid Ref: 63 / NS 318606
Above: Avro Anson
Photo: Source unknown
Present Condition
Park rangers
found engine and some fragments in 1987.
Related Links
Articles and photos of the Avro Anson are available at the following
sites:
Below: Avro 652a Anson T21 of Air Atlantique Historic
Flight at
Hullavington Airfield, Wiltshire, England.
RAF Hullavington
Photo: 2005 Adrian Pingstone (Arpingstone)
(Released by the author to the public domain)
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