The cause of the crash has always been a mystery, although there has never been any suggestion of enemy action or sabotage. In August 1940, just after the start of World War Two, three Cabinet Ministers and the Chief of the General Staff, plus another six people were killed when a Royal Australian Air Force Lockheed Hudson bomber stalled and crashed into the mountain. The Canberra Times was representative : "These losses to Australia come at an hour when least of all we can spare theservices of those who can lead and direct us through hours unparralled in their significance for the future welfare of this people. Suddenly, I hear a rustle behind me. Due to an old injury, Fairbairns right arm was noticeably shorter than his left. Every day we package the most popular Riotact stories and send them straight to your inbox. Incidentally, Dr. Nott did not bring a female nurse with him to assist in possible rescues, but his 10-year-old son. Cockpit For All Aircraft. A kangaroo or two will cross your path, or a flock of choughs; their white wing-fans flashing against their black bodies. Of course, this makes absolutely no sense whatsoever as no nurse died in the rescue attempt and as far as I can ascertain, no WWII nurse has ever died on Mount Ainslie. 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Friends and family have stated that Keren almost always wore her hair down, but on the night that she disappeared she was wearing her hair up. Nah! [a] However, no evidence of that nature was brought before the inquest. Unfortunately, the torch I had was a feeble, wind-up model and cast little light. Subscribe to receive the latest local voices straight to your inbox. Yes, there are. In many cases, yes. People that were in the area reported seeing unearthly lights that would flash in an old dirt parking lot next to the memorial. But it is. New budget airline arrives, but will it drive down high airfares? Business and technology stories from the Canberra region. I regained the car and returned to my home - but the memory of that sinister place lingers with me still.. Can all these people [who have seen ghosts] be wrong? On the evening of February 26, 1971, a 20-year-old woman named Keren Rowland went missing. All ten men in the aircraft - four crew and six passengers - lost their lives in the crash. Check out some of these well-known Canberra haunts. Fairbairn's private secretary Dick Elford and White's staff officer Frank Thornthwaite were the two other passengers. in 1940, Australia still had not committed fully to Canberra as its National Capital. Photographs supplied by Jason Hitchcock / Henry Moulds, Monument details supplied by Monument Australia - www.monumentaustralia.org.au, Monument Australia 2010 - 2023 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED - Designed by, Pialligo Avenue, Fairbairn Pine Plantation, Majura, 2609. History has shown us that ghosts and the supernatural seem to be commonplace and that a large percentage of people in the western world, indeed from all races and religions, not only believe in ghosts but have also experienced something that they believe is of a supernatural origin. It was a completely airworthy plane in the hands of a competent pilot. Your help would be greatly appreciated. Could it be possible that the reports of supernatural and odd events on Mount Ainslie are a direct result of these tragic deaths so many years ago? The deaths of the three cabinet ministers severely weakened the United Australia Party government of Robert Menzies and contributed to its fall in 1941. Thankfully its neither. Every day we package the most popular Riotact stories and send them straight to your inbox. Affixed to the rock is a plaque dedicated to the dead. One of those promoted in the reshuffle was Harold Holt, recalled from Army service and thus gaining a promotion that eventually led to the Prime Ministership. I quickly left, having proved my courage to myself. Curious to see for yourself? Crash claims 10 lives The type of plane involved in the crash, a Lockheed Hudson bomber (Supplied: Gavin Conroy) "I could see the smoke coming over the hill. When Menzies attended a memorial gathering at the site on 12 August 1960, 20 years after the crash, he was seen to be still very emotional in recalling the day. Were told this is a forget what you know situation, diall National burger chain Hello Harry opened its first store in Canberra last week, adding to the delicious array of eaterie February 27, 2023 | Food & Drink, Arts, Culture. Despite not only landing the plane just a short time earlier and also landing a Hudson in very similar conditions in Canberra previously. The aircraft, a RAAF Lockheed Hudson II bomber, was flown by an experienced Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) officer, Flight Lieutenant Robert Hitchcock. Mackellar had attested that it would be "fairly safe to assume that all ten men were killed when the plane hit the ground". It's located in the country, in East Bethany, NY (near Rochester and Buffalo) and there are said to have been 17,000 people buried with unmarked graves. While none of the men made it out of the plane alive, at least two of the bodies were found towards the back of the plane, in the aisle. The memorial is a large granite monolith with a bronze inscription with a dedication to the lives . The aircraft, A16-97, had been in service with the RAAF since 20 June 1940, and was being operated by No.2 Squadron. Here are the instructions how to enable JavaScript in your web browser. I was sure Id charged the camera fully before leaving home. Is it a ghost? Once a morgue, the National Film and Sound Archives is heaving with paranormal activity. The silence is sometimes punctured by the distant sound of gunfire from the Defence firing range or the passage of helicopters and aeroplanes flying over from the nearby airport. Its something Id been dared to do for a long time. White returned to the Army as Chief of the General Staff in 1940. The memorial is a large granite monolith with a bronze inscription with a dedication to the . It disappeared behind a low tree-dotted hill. Live it up, Lakeside.New spaces. All ten people on board were killed: six passengers, including three members of the Australian Cabinet and the Chief of the General Staff; and four crew. Not only was this crash a tragedy for all of the family and friends of the men killed, but it was also a tragedy for Australia; the prime minister had just lost some of his closest friends and allies. How Canberra could become a test case for high-speed rail, First Look: NoshersCBR - the Belconnen food van producing fantastic burgers, Minister vowed to double down on Robodebt even when told it was illegal, royal commission hears, Department of Finance executives encouraged conduct in alleged fraud conspiracy, barrister claims, Big agenda, big deal if the APS isn't at capacity, Getting loud about live music and the night-time economy. Ive never experienced. Vice - President of the Executive Council, The Honourable James Valentine Fairbairn At some point we all became aware of occasional noises coming from scrub it was the sound of someone walking through the bush i.e. Canberra's best regional produce is just a click away. While preparing to land from what had been a normal flight, the plane suddenly nosedived into a field just a mile and a half from the Canberra Aerodrome. Another oddity about the inquest is the causes of death. The fatalities included several members of Robert Menzies ministry who were flying to Canberra for an important war cabinet meeting. They never made it. Newspaper editorials across the country recognised this. View, Emily Jayne I was about to tag you ! [3] The aircraft had 7 hours and 10 minutes of flying time,[4] of which 2 hours and 35 minutes had been completed by Lockheed test pilots. Should new apartment blocks have car spaces for each occupant? According to an August 14, 1940 article in The Argus Officials who examined the wreckage are certain that it was very little damaged in the landing, and that had the fire not occurred, the occupants would have escaped. It seems perhaps it was easier on the coroner to tell the families of these men that they died instantly from skull fractures, and not that they died a horrible death from smoke inhalation and fire after the initial crash. A. F. Aircraftsman Class 1 Charles Joseph Crosdale, R. A. Rhetorical question. You pass the edge of the Defence firing range, its large white signs on high wire fences warning of the dire consequences of trespass. Police believe that Keren was killed elsewhere and then her body was dumped at the memorial site later. Her car was found the following day on the side of Parkes Way road with no gas. Meanwhile Simon Evans of Isabella Plains claims he experienced phantom footsteps while recently being dared to visit the haunted site with a couple of friends. [25] This conclusion contradicted initial newspaper reports that the victims had been killed by the post-crash fire. I've never experienced but according to some, there are other memories of the crash still around as well. They were either young and in their prime, or in positions of great power. Should new apartment blocks have car spaces for each occupant? Anyone else have any stories? On 13th August 1940, three Commonwealth ministers, the Chief of General Staff, two of their staff and four crew members flew in a RAAF Lockheed Houston aeroplane from Melbourne to Canberra to attend a Cabinet meeting. Just wondering. If you go on the weird Canberra tour with Tim the Yowie man they actually have a key to the air disaster memorial area and drive the bus in there. Richard Edwin Elford. Phew! The entire time you are surrounded by pines; their branches rattling in the wind. Air Disaster Memorial in Canberra Air Disaster Memorial The Air Disaster Memorial lies at the site of the tragic crash in August 1940 which took the lives of ten men, including General Sir Cyril Brudenell White and three Federal Ministers. Music, festivals, charity events - everything thats happening in the Canberra region. Feel free to shout me a beer!https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/gHOSTbITCHESSome links if yr interested in reading more about ithttps://www.thedeadhistory.com/the-burning-airman-canberra-australia/https://www.nca.gov.au/air-disaster-memorialhttps://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/1940_Canberra_air_disaster General Sir Cyril White, Chief of the General Staff. Pearl Preview Screening at Dendy Cinema Friday 3 March A few documented stories. The loss of so many men vital to war administration in Australia at the time was a devastating blow. Its an interesting place, quite eerie, but this is expected given its remote location, the history of the place, and the stories that circulate about it. For many years now, the crash site has sparked tales of distressing apparitions. I soon reach another locked gate. Air Disaster Memorial It's been 75 years since a Lockheed Hudson bomber crashed into a hill between Canberra airport and Queanbeyan, killing 10 people. Officials at the time stated it was because it was warming up, however the plane had just recently completed a flight and no warm-up would have been necessary. The plane immediately burst into flames and while it only took rescuers a couple of minutes to arrive, all ten passengers and crew were beyond hope of rescue. The dedication occurred on the twentieth anniversary of the crash. 2 Squadron. Just down from Florries haunt is Duntroon House. RAAF emergency crews were on the scene within minutes but the force of the crash was considerable and all were presumed killed instantly. In the wake of the loss of three senior Cabinet ministers, Menzies was forced to reshuffle his ministry. The Cabinet was permanently weakened by their loss, and that was a factor undermining Menzies's position in the following months. Surrounded by dense stands of pines I start to feel hemmed in, almost claustrophobic. Like other legends, these tales of strange activity never seem to have any dates or names attached to them. An account of his comments appears in the book Air Crash vol. Witnesses reported seeing a dark car near Kerens car on the night in question and said a woman fitting Kerens description was walking towards the car. Who while serving their country lost their lives on this spot in an aircraft accident on 13th August 1940. This is from an early draft as I dont have the final. [11], The Ministers and General White, with their staff, were being flown from Melbourne to Canberra for a Cabinet meeting. Lieutenant Colonel Francis Thornthwaite, Staff Officer to General White. Theres the teenager who left the surrounding forest screaming that she was being followed by an airman on fire and many folk have heard dull explosions and the noise of a crashing plane. Up one last hill and I finally reach the memorial. At the far end a grey metal plaque has been erected on an aerodynamic lectern, its surface weathered by hard Canberra winters. Blundells Cottage the-riotact.com | riotact.com.cn | regionriverina.com.au | aboutregional.com.au | b2bmagazine.com.au | thisiscanberra.com | mygungahlin.com.au. He was elected to Parliament in 1925, becoming Deputy Leader of the Opposition from 1929 to 1930, Minister for Trade and Customs from 1928 to 1929 and 1932 to 1933, Minister without portfolio from 1934 to 1937, Minister for External Affairs and Information from 1939 to 1940, and was appointed vice-president of the Executive Council in March 1940. Its just past 11pm and as I carefully clamber over the first gate it immediately feels like Ive entered another realm. Despite witness descriptions of the vehicle, the driver of the car was never identified. This remote and slightly eerie site would make a good setting for a scene in my next book, and I am contemplating a meeting between Clio and Renee occurring here for a number of reasons. Keren was killed elsewhere and then her body was dumped at the far end grey. Keren Rowland went missing Id been dared to do for a long time an aerodynamic,. To them ; ve never experienced but according to some, there other. 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