Air Union Blériot 155 crashes over Kent, killing all aboard
An Air Union Blériot 155 caught fire while crossing the English Channel and crashed near a Kent village, killing five passengers and two crew members.
A Air Union Blériot 155 left Paris bound for Croydon when, over the English Channel, witnesses on the ground observed a fire starting at the left engine and spreading to the left wing. The pilot tried to bring the aircraft down safely, but the burning plane crashed and rolled over near a village in Kent. The crash killed all five passengers and both crew members.
Subsequent inquiry found no evidence of pilot inexperience or mechanical unfitness, as the crew had completed many flights on the route and the aircraft was deemed serviceable. However, investigators were unable to pinpoint why the fire ignited, concluding the incident was an accidental death. The tragedy remains the first recorded in-flight fire of a commercial airliner.
Why it matters
It marks the earliest known in-flight fire of a passenger aircraft, highlighting early aviation safety challenges.
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