CRASH OF A P-400 AIRACOBRA
AT MOUNT GAMBIER AIRFIELD, SA
ON 19 MARCH 1942 (Z TIME)

On 19 March 1942, at 0130Z hours, P-400 Airacobra BW179 piloted by 2nd Lieutenant James Payne Ryan O-421325 of the 41st Pursuit Group of the 31st Pursuit Group landed at Mount Gambier Airfield in South Australia and the right wheel collapsed on touchdown at the start of the runway due to the condition of the landing ground. The right panel, aileron, wheel assembly and nose wheel assembly were all damaged. The pilot was uninjured.

NOTE:- Z time is 9 1/2 hours behind Adelaide time, assuming there was no Daylight Saving time in Adelaide at that time. Therefore the accident would have occurred at 11:00am local time on 19 March 1942.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I'd like to thank Gordon Birkett for his assistance with this web page.

Can anyone help me with more information on this crash?

"Australia @ War" WWII Research Products

This page first produced 5 January 2022

This page last updated 07 January 2022