Sabena OO-AUB Ostend crash
Encyclopedia
Sabena OO-AUB was a Junkers Ju 52
airliner
owned by Belgian
airline Sabena
, operating as a scheduled domestic passenger flight
between Cologne
, Germany
, to London
, United Kingdom
, which crashed near Ostend
, Belgium on . The flight was scheduled to stop at Brussels
, but bad weather forced the pilot to continue to Ostend
. Unfortunately, conditions were little better at Ostend, and the aircraft hit a factory chimney while circling to land at Stene Airport.
The plane was piloted by Tony Lambotte, one of the most senior in Sabena service, with over six hundred thousand flying miles to his credit. In his crew were an engineer, a wireless operator and a mechanic. Among those on board were the Hereditary Grand Duke Georg Donatus of Hesse
, known as Don to his family, his wife, former Princess Cecilie of Greece and Denmark (b. 1911, elder sister of Prince Philip
, later Duke of Edinburgh) who was heavily pregnant at the time, their sons Ludwig
and Alexander
(b. 1933), the Grand Duke's widowed mother, former Princess Eleonore of Solms-Hohensolms-Lich
, Joachim Riedesel
Freiherr (Baron) zu Eisenbach, and Lina Henar, the children's nurse. The group were travelling to London for the wedding
of the Hereditary Grand Duke's younger brother Louis
with Margaret Geddes (1913-1997), daughter of Lord Geddes
. Baron Riedesel was to be Louis' best man.
, Don's aunt.
, Hesse
a few days later. Attending were Prince Philip
, Gottfried, Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg
, Prince Philipp of Hesse, Berthold, Margrave of Baden
, Prince August Wilhelm of Prussia
and Lord Louis Mountbatten, among others. A photograph of the funeral procession, showing Prince Louis
as chief mourner, shows crowds saluting the mourners with their right hand in the air. World War II began less than two years later.
The Hereditary Grand Duke and Duchess' fourteen-month-old daughter, Johanna
was the only one of the family who was not onboard the aircraft. She was adopted by her uncle Louis in early 1938. Johanna died of meningitis
in 1939.
With the death of the childless Prince Louis in 1968, the male line of the Hesse and by Rhine became extinct.
The wedding had been scheduled for 20th, but because of the crash was brought forward to 17th. (Hessian Tapestry. David Duff)
Junkers Ju 52
The Junkers Ju 52 was a German transport aircraft manufactured from 1932 to 1945. It saw both civilian and military service during the 1930s and 1940s. In a civilian role, it flew with over 12 air carriers including Swissair and Deutsche Luft Hansa as an airliner and freight hauler...
airliner
Airliner
An airliner is a large fixed-wing aircraft for transporting passengers and cargo. Such aircraft are operated by airlines. Although the definition of an airliner can vary from country to country, an airliner is typically defined as an aircraft intended for carrying multiple passengers in commercial...
owned by Belgian
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
airline Sabena
Sabena
SABENA was the national airline of Belgium from 1923 to 2001, with its base at Brussels National Airport. After its bankruptcy in 2001, the newly formed SN Brussels Airlines took over part of SABENA's assets in February 2002, which then became Brussels Airlines...
, operating as a scheduled domestic passenger flight
Airline
An airline provides air transport services for traveling passengers and freight. Airlines lease or own their aircraft with which to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for mutual benefit...
between Cologne
Cologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, which crashed near Ostend
Ostend
Ostend is a Belgian city and municipality located in the Flemish province of West Flanders. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerke , Stene and Zandvoorde, and the city of Ostend proper – the largest on the Belgian coast....
, Belgium on . The flight was scheduled to stop at Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
, but bad weather forced the pilot to continue to Ostend
Ostend
Ostend is a Belgian city and municipality located in the Flemish province of West Flanders. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerke , Stene and Zandvoorde, and the city of Ostend proper – the largest on the Belgian coast....
. Unfortunately, conditions were little better at Ostend, and the aircraft hit a factory chimney while circling to land at Stene Airport.
The plane was piloted by Tony Lambotte, one of the most senior in Sabena service, with over six hundred thousand flying miles to his credit. In his crew were an engineer, a wireless operator and a mechanic. Among those on board were the Hereditary Grand Duke Georg Donatus of Hesse
Georg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse
Georg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse was the first child of Ernest Louis, Grand Duke of Hesse and Eleonore of Solms-Hohensolms-Lich....
, known as Don to his family, his wife, former Princess Cecilie of Greece and Denmark (b. 1911, elder sister of Prince Philip
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh is the husband of Elizabeth II. He is the United Kingdom's longest-serving consort and the oldest serving spouse of a reigning British monarch....
, later Duke of Edinburgh) who was heavily pregnant at the time, their sons Ludwig
Prince Ludwig of Hesse and by Rhine
Prince Ludwig of Hesse and by Rhine , , was the eldest son of Georg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse and Princess Cecilie of Greece and Denmark, an older sister of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.He was killed at age six in an airplane crash in 1937...
and Alexander
Prince Alexander of Hesse and by Rhine (1933-1937)
Prince Alexander of Hesse and by Rhine , , was the second son of Georg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse and Princess Cecilie of Greece and Denmark, an elder sister of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.He was killed at age four in an airplane crash in 1937...
(b. 1933), the Grand Duke's widowed mother, former Princess Eleonore of Solms-Hohensolms-Lich
Princess Eleonore of Solms-Hohensolms-Lich
Princess Eleonore of Solms-Hohensolms-Lich , was the second wife of Ernst-Ludwig, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine and the mother of his two sons.-Family:...
, Joachim Riedesel
Riedesel
Riedesel is a German family name that began to appear in legal documents in the early 13th century. They were of the knightly class, though not all had the official status of Ritter or knight. Its exact geographical and temporal origins are uncertain. However, all of the early references are from...
Freiherr (Baron) zu Eisenbach, and Lina Henar, the children's nurse. The group were travelling to London for the wedding
Wedding
A wedding is the ceremony in which two people are united in marriage or a similar institution. Wedding traditions and customs vary greatly between cultures, ethnic groups, religions, countries, and social classes...
of the Hereditary Grand Duke's younger brother Louis
Prince Louis of Hesse and by Rhine
Louis, Prince of Hesse and by Rhine was the youngest son of Ernest Louis, Grand Duke of Hesse by his second wife Eleonore of Solms-Hohensolms-Lich....
with Margaret Geddes (1913-1997), daughter of Lord Geddes
Auckland Geddes, 1st Baron Geddes
Auckland Campbell-Geddes, 1st Baron Geddes GCMG, KCB, PC was a British academic, soldier, politician and diplomat...
. Baron Riedesel was to be Louis' best man.
Crash
As Lambotte brought the plane in over Stene to land, the tip of a wing touched the chimney's top. The wing and an engine were ripped away and, in a mass of flames, the Junkers crashed into the works below. All 11 passengers and crew lost their lives in the accident. The remains of Grand Duchess Cecilie's unborn child were found among the wreckage. The plane crash occurred on the 59th anniversary of the death of Princess Marie of Hesse and by RhinePrincess Marie of Hesse and by Rhine
Princess Marie of Hesse and by Rhine , , was the youngest daughter of Princess Alice of the United Kingdom and Ludwig IV, the Grand Duke of Hesse. Her mother was the second daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha...
, Don's aunt.
Aftermath
Louis' wedding was held as scheduled on the following day, but it was small and quiet, with the guests dressed in mourning. Immediately afterward, he set off with his new wife Margaret to Belgium to visit the crash site. The funeral of Don and his family took place in DarmstadtDarmstadt
Darmstadt is a city in the Bundesland of Hesse in Germany, located in the southern part of the Rhine Main Area.The sandy soils in the Darmstadt area, ill-suited for agriculture in times before industrial fertilisation, prevented any larger settlement from developing, until the city became the seat...
, Hesse
Hesse
Hesse or Hessia is both a cultural region of Germany and the name of an individual German state.* The cultural region of Hesse includes both the State of Hesse and the area known as Rhenish Hesse in the neighbouring Rhineland-Palatinate state...
a few days later. Attending were Prince Philip
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh is the husband of Elizabeth II. He is the United Kingdom's longest-serving consort and the oldest serving spouse of a reigning British monarch....
, Gottfried, Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg
Gottfried, Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg
Gottfried, Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg was the only son of Ernst II, Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg. He was the titular Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg from 1950 until his death.-Early life:...
, Prince Philipp of Hesse, Berthold, Margrave of Baden
Berthold, Margrave of Baden
Berthold Friedrich Wilhelm Ernst August Heinrich Karl, Margrave of Baden was born on 24 February 1906 in Karlsruhe, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. He was the son of Prince Maximilian, Margrave of Baden and Princess Marie Louise of Hanover and Cumberland. He died on 27 October 1963 in Spaichingen,...
, Prince August Wilhelm of Prussia
Prince August Wilhelm of Prussia
Prince August Wilhelm Heinrich Günther Viktor of Prussia , called "Auwi", was the fourth son of Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany by his first wife, Augusta Viktoria of Schleswig-Holstein....
and Lord Louis Mountbatten, among others. A photograph of the funeral procession, showing Prince Louis
Prince Louis of Hesse and by Rhine
Louis, Prince of Hesse and by Rhine was the youngest son of Ernest Louis, Grand Duke of Hesse by his second wife Eleonore of Solms-Hohensolms-Lich....
as chief mourner, shows crowds saluting the mourners with their right hand in the air. World War II began less than two years later.
The Hereditary Grand Duke and Duchess' fourteen-month-old daughter, Johanna
Princess Johanna of Hesse and by Rhine
Princess Johanna of Hesse and by Rhine , , was the third child and only daughter of Georg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse and Princess Cecilie of Greece and Denmark...
was the only one of the family who was not onboard the aircraft. She was adopted by her uncle Louis in early 1938. Johanna died of meningitis
Meningitis
Meningitis is inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord, known collectively as the meninges. The inflammation may be caused by infection with viruses, bacteria, or other microorganisms, and less commonly by certain drugs...
in 1939.
With the death of the childless Prince Louis in 1968, the male line of the Hesse and by Rhine became extinct.
See also
- Lists of accidents and incidents on commercial airliners
- Air safetyAir safetyAir safety is a term encompassing the theory, investigation and categorization of flight failures, and the prevention of such failures through regulation, education and training. It can also be applied in the context of campaigns that inform the public as to the safety of air travel.-United...
The wedding had been scheduled for 20th, but because of the crash was brought forward to 17th. (Hessian Tapestry. David Duff)