12 April 1938 Cugnaux air accident

On 12 April 1938 a Bloch MB 210 bomber of the III Escadrille of the 23éme Escadre du bombardement stationed at Toulouse-Francazal Airport crashed while landing at Cugnaux. There were no fatalities among the five crew members.

The accident

On the afternoon of 12 April 1938 a Bloch MB 210 bomber, belonging to the III Escadrille of the 23éme Escadre du bombardement stationed at Toulouse-Francazal Airport, was carrying out a training flight in the region west of Toulouse. The crew was made up as follows: Lieutenant René Charles Maiffren, instructor pilot; Lieutenant Hauez, pilot; Sergeant Major mechanic Cazeneuve; Sergeant Major pilot Bertucci; Sergeant mechanic and gunner Jaubin. While the aircraft was flying at an altitude of between 1,800 and 2,000 metres, the pilot suddenly decided to return to the air base.

Shortly before landing the aircraft, which was flying at very low altitude due to a loss of power in a Gnome et Rhône radial engine, struck, following a gust of wind, a high-voltage power line located above the road between Cugnaux and Saint-Simon. The aircraft immediately crashed to the ground and caught fire. The airmen were immediately rescued by three farmers, Messrs Huc, from Cugnaux, and Séri and Marteille, who, heedless of the flames, rushed to help them get out of the aircraft at the risk of their own lives. Two of them, Lieutenant Hauez and Sergeant Major Bertucci, were seriously injured in the head and legs and were admitted to the military hospital, while the other three were only slightly injured.

The aircraft was brand new from the factory, having left it in March 1938, but the model was notorious for the number of accidents that marked its career (11), so much so that the press of the time called it a "flying coffin". These accidents were often due to engine problems: quality of the lubricating oil, poor engine ventilation due to the shape of the cowling, and frequent failures. As a training aircraft, however, it stood out because it was the only French aircraft equipped with variable-pitch propellers and retractable landing gear.