11 February 1939: Barely two weeks after its first flight, First Lieutenant Benjamin Scovill (“Ben”) Kelsey, U.S. Army Air Corps, took the prototype Lockheed XP-38, 37-457, on a record-breaking transcontinental flight from March Field, Riverside, California, to Mitchel Field, Long Island, New York.
Lieutenant Kelsey departed March Field at 6:32 a.m., Pacific Standard Time, (9:32 a.m., Eastern) and flew to Amarillo, Texas for the first of two refueling stops. He arrived there at 12:22 p.m., EST, and remained on the ground for 22 minutes. The XP-38 took off at 12:44 p.m., EST, and Kelsey flew on to Wright Field, Dayton, Ohio. He landed there at 3:10 p.m. EST. Kelsey was met by Major General H.H. Arnold, and it was decided to continue to New York. The XP-38 was airborne again at 3:28 p.m., EST, on the final leg of his transcontinental flight. Kelsey was overhead Mitchel Field, New York at 4:55 p.m., Eastern Standard Time, but his landing was delayed by other airplanes in the traffic pattern. On approach, the XP-38 was behind several slower training planes, so Lieutenant Kelsey throttled back the engines. When he tried to throttle up, the carburetor venturis iced and the engines would not accelerate, remaining at idle. The airplane crashed on a golf course short of the airport. |
First Lieutenant Benjamin Scovill (“Ben”) Kelsey,
U.S. Army Air Corps, |
Two twin-engine Douglas B-18 Bolo bombers, with twofighter escorts left Mitchel Field on a routine training flight. The two bombers carried a crew of 11. 15 miles from Mitchel Field, above densely populated Bellerose Manor of Queens, NY, the two bombers executed a maneuver at 2,500 feet, one passing under the other. The two planes collided and crashed in flames. One landed within a block of a school and the second smashed into a one-story residence that instantly went up in flames. All 11 crewmen — two of whom unsuccessfully attempted to escape by parachute — perished in the wreckage.” |
Portraitofwar.com |
Posted: Thursday, March 19, 2015 10:30 am by Ron Marzlock, Chronicle Contributor This year marks the 75th anniversary of the terrible midair crash over Bellerose Manor that rained destruction down on the homeowners of 239th Street off Hillside Avenue. On June 17, 1940 two twin-engine Douglas B-18 bombers were sent out from Nassau County’s Mitchel Field for a training exercise at 2,500 feet, in which one plane would pass under the other one. The maneuver did not go off as planned and the two collided, raining down metal, glass, other debris and fuel onto the newly built homes. All 11 men on board — including two who tried to parachute to safety — died. |
The scene on 239th Street south of Hillside Avenue in Bellerose Manor shortly after the plane crash of June 17, 1940.
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One civilian, Emily Kraft, age 35, died the next day of burns suffered due to fuel that ignited in her home. Queens General Hospital, a new state-of-the-art facility at the time, responded to the scene with its “Catastrophic Squad.” A small plaque later was set up near the site to mark the tragic event. Asbestos companies seized the opportunity to run full-page ads touting the safety of their product, as the homes with asbestos siding, shingles and roofing did not ignite and burn when sprayed with the fuel. |
The mid-air collision of two Curtiss P-40 fighters over Wyandanch on February 6, 1941, killed one army pilot (J. T. Laycock) whose fighter plane crashed on Main Avenue, the other piloted by John H. Eakin came to earth on Long Island Avenue near Little East Neck Road. Eakin survived the crash.
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