Date & Time:
Apr 25, 1930
Type of aircraft:
Lockheed 8 Sirius/Altair
Operator:
Registration:
NC12W
Flight Phase:
Takeoff (climb)
Flight Type:
Demonstration
Survivors:
Yes
Site:
Plain, Valley
Schedule:
Roscommon - Roscommon
MSN:
142
YOM:
1930
Country:
United States of America
Region:
North America
Crew on board:
1
Crew fatalities:
1
Pax on board:
1
Pax fatalities:
0
Other fatalities:
0
Total fatalities:
1
Circumstances:
The pilot Herbert J. 'Hub' Fahy and his wife Claire flew a new Sirius to a small grass strip in Roscommon, Michigan, where they were to demonstrate the plane to a potential buyer, Cliff Durant, son of William Durant, founder of General Motors. The Fahys acted as sales agents for Lockheed and the deal was Durant agreed to buy the plane if Fahy could prove that the Sirius could land and takeoff safely from Durant’s personal strip. Herb and Claire got the plane on the ground without incident, but as they took off, one of the wheels of the Sirius hit a partially hidden stump, which flipped the plane over. According to reports in the Herald Tribune for April 26 and 28, 1930, Fahy suffered a fractured skull and a severe concussion while Claire survived uninjured. Rescuers had to cut away part of the plane's structure to extricate the fliers. Fahy was rushed to a local hospital where he died early on Sunday morning, April 27, 1930 without regaining consciousness. He was 33 years old.
