From The Daily News (Perth, WA : 1882 - 1950) 13/06/1947

Jet Plane Has Near Shave

MELBOURNE, Fri— Australia's first jet-propelled Vampire fighter nearly ended its short career in disaster this week when landing after a test flight from the Point Cook R.A.A.F. station.

The port landing wheel 'folded up' at the end of the landing run and the machine slewed round crazily. Some structural damage was done to the wingtip and under carriage, but the test pilot, Flight Lieutenant Lee Archer, a member of the aircraft performance unit, was unhurt. The machine is now undergoing repairs, but the job cannot be completed until some parts are flown out from England Flight-Lieutenant Archer realised that some trouble had developed while he was still in the air. When he radioed to the ground it was seen that one of the landing wheels on the Vampire was hanging down. Archer at last managed to lower the rest of the undercarriage and approached Point Cook for a landing. The machine touched down at about 100 miles an hour, but suddenly, as the speed dropped to about 45 m.p.h., it went down on one side and slewed around to rest on the port wing. It had turned about 90 degrees when it stopped.

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