St. Louis, MO Mayor & Officials Killed In Glider Mishap, Aug 1943

Craft Which Had Just Made a
Test Flight Falls Directly
on Lambert Field

Special to THE NEW YORK TIMES
ST. LOUIS, Aug. 1—Ten persons,
including the Mayor of St.
Louis, the president of the St.
Louis Chamber of Commerce and
other civic and aviation officials
and Army officers, were killed here
today in the crash of an Army
troop and cargo carrying glider
during a demonstration.
The glider cut loose from its
towing plane at an altitude of
about 1,000 feet over the north
end of Lambert-St. Louis field and
careened to the ground in a spin
before the eyes of 4,000 spectators
gathered to witness the demonstration.
Witnesses said the glider's right
wing appeared to collapse before it
began its plunge. When it struck
the ground, debris and bodies were
thrown 50 feet in the air.

List of the Victims

Following is a list of those who
were killed:
WILLIAM DEE BECKER, Mayor
of St. Louis.
THOMAS N. DYSART, president
of the St. Louis Chamber of
Commerce.
MAX H. DOYNE, director of public
utilities.
CHARLES L. CUNNINGHAM,
deputy controller.
HENRY L. MUELLER, presiding
judge of the County Court of St.
Louis County.
Maj. WILLIAM B. ROBERTSON
veteran St. Louis aviation en
thusiast and president of the
Robertson Aircraft Corporation,
maker of the glider.
Capt. MILTON C. KLUGH of the
Seventy-first Troop Carrier Command,
Stout Field, Indianapolis,
pilot of the glider.
Lieut. Col. PAUL H. HAZELTON
of the Army Air Forces.
HAROLD A. KRUEGER vice
president and general manager
of Robertson Aircraft Corporation.
J. M. DAVIS, a private first class,
attached to the 71st
Troop Carrier Command.

Tow Plane Releases Craft

The craft, flying directly over
the field, had just been released
from its tow plane. A moment
after the release, the right wing of
the glider was observed to buckle.
The craft wavered, and then the
wing crumpled and fell
free from the fuselage.
Witnesses said the glider appeared
to begin to disintegrate
the moment its full weight was
borne by its wings after its release.
The fuselage, bearing its human
cargo, pointed its nose down and
plummeted to the center of the
field. There was a dull crash,
heard above screams of the spectators.
According to one account, there
were two sharp explosions heard
just before the glider's wing
collapsed.
Aug. 2 edition of The New York Times
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Submitted & Transcribed by Greg Eichelberger. Thanks, Greg!