1936 Jersey Air Disaster
Guernsey Airways Saro Cloud · Ditching due to engine failure
From Guernsey, Channel Islands to Jersey, Channel Islands
Event
- Event typeAccident: someone killed or seriously injured, or the aircraft substantially damaged (NTSB definition). Incident: an occurrence that affected or could have affected safety, short of that. Glossary
- Accident
- Event fatalities
- 10 · all aircraft and ground
- Ground fatalities
- Unknown
- Occupants
- 10
- Survivors
- 0
- InjuriesFatal: death within 30 days. Serious: over 48 hours in hospital within a week, most broken bones, severe bleeding, nerve or organ damage, or serious burns. Minor: anything less. Glossary
- Unknown
- OperationWhat kind of flying it was, grouped by the rules it flew under: airline (US Part 121), air taxi and commuter (Part 135), general aviation (Part 91 and similar), military or government. Glossary
- Airline
Saro Cloud
- Aircraft type
- Saro CLOUD
- Category
- Airplane · from aircraft type
- RegistrationThe aircraft's tail number, such as N12345 or G-ABCD. Registrations are reissued, so the same one years apart can be a different aircraft. Glossary
- G-ABXW
- Operator
- Guernsey Airways
- Onboard fatalities
- 10
- Route
- From Guernsey, Channel IslandsTo Jersey, Channel Islands
Cause areas
- Aircraft › Aircraft power plant
From the investigation findings the Wikipedia article reports, sorted into the NTSB's cause areas with AI assistance.
Not plotted · Not plotted: the Wikipedia article gives no coordinates, and its site names no town or airport that matches exactly.
From the Wikipedia article
The 1936 Jersey Air Disaster occurred on 31 July 1936 when the Cloud of Iona, a Saro Cloud flying boat operated by Guernsey Airways, ditched into the sea off Jersey, Channel Islands, during a flight between Guernsey and Jersey. Investigators believed that the flying boat failed to reach its destination due to engine failure. All ten on board were assumed to have died.
Accident
Guernsey Airways was formed in 1934 as a subsidiary of Jersey Airways to operate services between St Peter Port, Guernsey and St Brelade's Bay in Jersey. On 31 July 1936 the Cloud of Iona failed to arrive in Jersey. It had departed around 19:00 and the journey should have taken 20 minutes. The weather was poor and visibility was reduced by drizzle. At 22:00 the St Helier lifeboat was launched to search for the flying boat; it searched all night without finding anything. In the morning a number of French military aircraft from Cherbourg and Royal Air Force aircraft joined the search: an RAF aircraft reported sighting fabric and plywood in the sea. On 2 August three motorboats from Jersey returned with wreckage including wood, cushions and fabric, which was identified as coming from the Cloud of Iona. An official from Channel Islands Airways, the parent company of both Jersey and Guernsey Airways, made a statement:
Investigation and cause
Investigation
It was concluded that, following total engine failure, the pilot was able to land safely on the sea and, although everyone onboard had time to put on their lifejacket, the aircraft was overturned and broken up by the sea and everyone drowned.
Text from the Wikipedia article “1936 Jersey Air Disaster” (revision 1360258734, retrieved 2026-09-18) by its authors, under CC BY-SA 4.0. Extracted as plain text: references, tables, images and some sections are left out. Read the article
Sources
Wikipedia article: 1936 Jersey Air Disaster
- Article
- 1936 Jersey Air Disaster
- Revision
- 1360258734 · 2026-06-20 · retrieved 2026-09-18
- Wikidata
- Q85722237
- Licence
- Text CC BY-SA 4.0, by the article's authors; Wikidata CC0; town positions GeoNames (CC BY 4.0)
Where each value comes from
- Record
- Wikipedia article "1936 Jersey Air Disaster" (page 62723973, revision 1360258734)
- Date
- Wikipedia infobox: date
- Place and country
- Wikipedia infobox: site
- Map position
- none
- Aircraft, operator and route
- Wikipedia infobox: aircraft type, registration, operator, origin and destination; route airports from the linked airport articles' Wikidata codes (OurAirports)
- Operation
- operator named as an airline in the infobox
- Fatalities
- Wikipedia infobox: aircraft fatalities
- Ground fatalities
- not stated in the Wikipedia infobox
- Summary
- Wikipedia infobox: summary
Source notes (1)
- Wikipedia · Facts from the Wikipedia article's infobox and coordinates, not checked against an investigation report. Independent review pending.