Posted by Frederick Galea on Facebook on the 05/05/2023
A long while ago, a fisherman, dropped by aviation our museum and handed over to us a barnacle encrusted aircraft part which had become entangled in one of his nets. He was aware that many years earlier an aircraft has come down in the sea off the cliffs at Ras il-Pellegrin.
The said part was cleaned of its barnacles (photo above right) revealing a part number and aircraft manufacturer’s stamp; thus its provenance was identified. As the aircraft consisted mainly of wood and fabric, little is left today, mostly a few metal brackets, similar to the one found which was fitted to the main spars, some tubing, and possibly the aircraft engine.
Col Mark Said AFM (Retd) takes up the story: At ten in the morning of Monday, 25 April 1932, Blackburn Ripon S1265 (numbered 75) of 460 Flight, Fleet Air Arm, took off from Royal Naval Air Station Hal Far on a routine navigation training flight. It flew along the West coast towards the smaller island of Gozo. The two crew members aboard the two-seat Naval Ripon aircraft were, twenty-three year-old Flying Officer Paul Leslie Irvin RN, (Flight instructor), and eighteen-year-old Midshipman Archibald Hamilton RN, of HMS Resolution. The latter was temporarily embarked on the carrier Glorious for a short course of instruction in aerial navigation.
One and a half hours into the flight, the Napier Lion engine of the Ripon failed. The machine was ditched about three quarters of a mile off Ras il-Pellegrin, limits of Gnejna Bay and capsized. The two airmen managed to un-strap themselves of their submerged cockpits and make it to the surface of the cold water. On surfacing Irvin noticed that his passenger had drifted apart from him. Without hesitation, he let go of his grip, swam in rough seas, grabbed Hamilton and towed him back towards the floating machine. They both then held as best as they could to the machine as it bobbed up and down in high waves, whilst calling out for help in desperation.
When the aircraft’s engine had failed, John Portelli, a farmer, had been tending his fields at Ghajn Bierda, limits of Bahrija. His attention had been attracted by the sudden silence of the engine, and when he saw the aircraft descend behind the cliffs and fail to come up in a climb, he called some friends and ran towards the cliff’s edge from where they would surely have a better view of the sea. Arriving there, they saw both airmen holding onto a wing tip and noticed they were drifting slowly towards shore. The wreckage remained afloat about thirty yards from the shore until it sank at around 2.30 pm.
The rescuers at the top of the cliff threw one end of a rope but this was too short. They then dropped some pieces of wood down the cliff’s face, for the airmen to hold onto, but this attempt was also in vain. Unable to reach the shore in the heavy surf, the exhausted airmen swam further out expecting rescue to come from that direction. A few minutes later, a plane approached the area, circled overhead and minutes later flew back to the south east towards Hal Far.
Whilst tragedy was unfolding, one of the farmers cycled to Fort Bingemma half a mile away to call for assistance. The soldiers on guard duties at the Fort then informed Rabat Police Station, three miles away. On duty Police Inspector Loreto Bonnici and a number of Policemen raced to the area with rescue equipment and arrived on scene at around 3.15 pm. Unfortunately, they could not be of any assistance, as by the time they arrived, the two men were far out at sea and their only hope lay with a boat coming to their rescue.
It took another three quarters of an hour for His Majesty’s destroyer Vimiera to arrive on scene. Furthermore, it remained at the mouth of Fomm ir-rih Bay as the heavy swell made it difficult to navigate close inshore. A whaler lowered from the side of the ship made in the direction of the two men, the spot being indicated by a circling aircraft (No.7171) which had arrived only a few minutes earlier. It took the whaler another fifteen minutes to reach the two unfortunate individuals. By the time they were hauled aboard they were dead through severe exhaustion. The corpses were taken to Bighi Naval Hospital. Lt Irvin and Midshipman Hamilton were buried at the nearby Capuccini Naval Cemetery with full Military Honours.
NOTE: Today, in place is Maltese legislation protecting underwater cultural heritage.
