Evening star., 1918-02-24
FOUR AERO CADETS
AND TRAINER KILLED
Representative FairchiId's Son
Is Victim at Fort Worth Field
in Fall With Machine.
THREE CRASH AT MEMPHIS
By the Associated Press.

By the Associated Press.
FORT WORTH, Tex. February 23.-
American Cadet Franklin Fairchild was
killed this afternoon when his airplane
fell near Eyerman field.
Fairehild came here from Pelham, n
T.. February 1.
NEW YORK. February 2s.-cadet
Franklin Fairchild. killed today when
his airplane fell. was the only son OF
Benjamin. L. Fairchild of Pelham. N.
Y, representative in Congress from the
twenty-fourth New York district.
Young Fairchild was a graduate of
Yale College and had entered the Yale
Law School. He joined the Aviation
graduated from the ground school, of
the corps at Princeton January 19 and
was transferred as a cadet aviator to
Texas. Only last week he made his
first fight alone.
His father, Representative Fairchild.
was in New York when the news Of the
accident was received here. Represent
ative Fairchild is expected to reach
Washington today.
Representative Addison T. Smith of
Idaho is an uncle of the aviator. He
said last night that no details of the
accident in which his nephew was
killed had been received. The accident
occurred at IL o'clock yesterday morn
ing. he said.
Former Foot Ball Star Killed.
FORT WORTH, Tex, February "a
Horace Higginbotham. former all
American foot ball star from Yale and
a cadet naval aviator at Hicks field.
near here, was killed this afternoon
when the airplane in which he was fly
ing fell 1000 feet.
Ensign Frank Lynch, also Of the
Naval Flying Corps, who was plotting
the plane, was probably fatally injured
in the crash.
The wreck was discovered an hour
after the accident by a farmer who had
seen the plane fall He thought at the
time that the aviators were descending
in full control of the machine.
Higginbotham was the son of r. w.
Higginbotham, wealthy business man
of Dallas, Tex.
Lynch arrived here recently from
training in Canada with the Royal Fly
ing Corps. His home is in Lawrence,
Mass.
Three Killed at Memphis.
MEMPHIS, Tenn, February 23.-A
civilian flying instructor and two ca
diets at the United States aviation
training school at Park Field. near
here. are dead as the result of a col
lision between two airp1anes shortly
after o'clock this afternoon.
The The d dead; Guy H. Beagle Of Chicago:
Rome, Ga. flying cadet: Robert Gray,
jr.. of Long Island, N. Y, flying cadet.
The collision occurred when the air
planes were at an altitude of about
500 feet and both machines crashed
to earth. burying the bodies of the
three victims in a mass of wreckage.
All three bodies were frightfully man
gled. They are being held at the field
n iv,cr Nr1
who were Immediately notified.
Clash in Neutral Strip.
Instructor Reagle and Cadet Webb
were in regular instruction machine
working out of the southern half of
the flying field. Cadet Gray, who lack
ed but one hours work at range find
ing before completing training for a
commission as a second lieutenant, was
in the other machine alone, and was
operating out of the northern half
of the flying field. The crash came
while the machines were in what is
known as the neutral strip of air which
divides the two portions of the flying
field.
Reagle and Webb had made one
circle OF the southern field and were
Gray had circied the northern field once
and was going east on what he had in
tended to be the first leg of a cross
country trip.
Gray's Machine Hit.
The airplane carrying the two men
was slightly higher than the one driven
by Gray and crashed through the right
wing of the other machine. Instantly
both machines hurtled downward out
of control and struck the earth about
200 feet apart
Cadet Gray came to Park Field on
November 25 last from the ground
school at Princeton University. He
WAS q member of the second solo class,
starting when he met his death wSs
to havo beens his flnal air work before