Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1921-05-30
Ambulance
Ship Falls
In Storm
Five Officers and Two Ci-
villains Lose Lives in Worst
Wreck in History of
L. S. Aviation.
Ex-Congressman Victim

Chicago Tribune Omaha Bee Leased Wire.
Washington, May 29,-Five army
officers and two civilians, including
former congressman from Iowa,
were killed when all army airplane,
the Curtiss- Eagle ambulance plane
crashed to the ground near Indian
Head, Md, 40 miles southeast OF
Washington, yesterday evening dur
ing severe electrical storm.
The dead:
Lieut.. Col. Archie Miller, L. S. A.,
Washington. ....,
Maurice Connolly, Dubuque, Ia.
former member OF the house.
A. G. Batchelder, Washington
chairman of the board of the Ameri-
can Automobile association.
Lieut. S. NJ. Ames, Boston, pilot
of the wrecked plane.
Lieut. c. w. McDermott, Lang
ley Field, Va.
Lieut.. J. NJ. Pennewill, Langley
Field, Va
Sergt. Mech. Richard Blumsn-
kranz, Washington.
Army officers of the air service
said that the accident was the worst
in the history of aviation in this
country, and one of the few in whicl,
all passengers in machine had beer
killed almost instantly.
Strikes Electrical Storm.
The huge plane made successful
flight from Boiling field, Washing
ton, to Langley field, Newport News.
Va, yesterday afternoon, leaving on
the return trip at Sis. When near
Morgantown, Md, about 40 miles
from Washington and not far from
Indian Head, the plane ran into a
severe electrical storm.
While flying low and plainly VS.
ible from Indian Head, the airship
crumpled and crashed to the ground
The accident occurred about 8
o'clock, when the storm was at its
height.
The airship was one OF the largest
in the army service. 1t was designed
as an airship ambulance, but the
stretchers had been removed and
chairs had been substituted for the
trip
The Dolphin, the yacht of the sec
retary of the navy, was in the vi
cinity of Indian Head at the time
and when news of the accident was
received at the testing ground sta
ton, members of the crew were I'M
mediately ordered to the spot to take
charge of the bodies and ambulances
were sent from the station to bring
them to the Walter Reid hospital at
Washington.
News of the tragedy did not reach
Boiling field until nearly midnight
and, after several attempts to verify
the report, Lieutenant Wilkins, with
several men, left for Morgantown
with army trucks.
Bodies Taken to Hospital.
Lieutenant Wilkins returned short
ly before noon today and reported to
the commanding officer at Boiling
field. The bodies of the aviators
were received shortly before | o'clock
this afternoon at Walter Reid hos
pital
The Curtiss-Eagle was only recent
ly designed by Curtiss engineers at
Mineola 1t is a huge double-mo-
tored biplane patterned after the big
passenger carrying ships in Europe.
Built for ambulance service, pa
tlents were placed in the rear of the
tuselage from which stretchers hung
at intervals, easily accommodating
five people.
The plane is piloted from the front
cockpit. With the heavy motors
hung in front, landing on soft ground
is extremely hazardous, as the en-
gines fall back on the occupants of
the cockpit with any sudden impact
or crash.
Army officers said they believe the
high wind with the storm yesterday
blew down on the huge wings of the
plane and literally crashed it to earth.
Plane Total Wreck.
The cause of the tragedy will prob
ably never be known. as the plane
was SO badly wrecked as to make
anything but theory impossible.
FORMER Representative Maurice
Connolly, democrat, was born in
Turn to Page Two. Column One.)