G-AHNP Star Tiger Disappears
G-AHNP Star Tiger was an Avro Tudor Mark IV passenger aircraft owned and operated by British South American Airways (BSAA) which disappeared without trace over the Atlantic Ocean while on a flight between Santa Maria in the Azores and Bermuda on 30 January 1948. The loss of the aircraft along with that of BSAA Avro Tudor Star Ariel in 1949 remain unsolved to this day, with the resulting speculation helping to develop the Bermuda Triangle legend.
Avro Tudor "Star Tiger" departed London on January 27 for a flight to Bermuda. A failure of the cabin heating system and compass problems were remedied during the overnight stop at Lisbon, Portugal. The flight continued to Santa Maria, Azores the next day where the crew decided to stay overnight , because of predicted adverse weather conditions on the leg to Bermuda. A company Lancastrian (G-AGWL) was staying overnight as well. During the stay, compass trouble was again remedied. The Lancastrian departed Santa Maria at 14:22 for the flight to Bermuda, followed by the "Star Tiger" at 15:35. G-AHNP took off with a full load of petrol, causing a 936 pounds overload on takeoff. Planned flying altitude was 2000 feet. Last radio contact was at 03:00 and nothing more was heard from the flight. At 04:11 Lancastrian G-AGWL landed safely at Kindley Field, Bermuda one hour past the estimated time of arrival due to stronger then predicted headwinds (which had caused the plane to be carried 68 miles off course).
On January 30, 1948, the "Star Tiger" (registered as "G-AHNP") had logged just over 500 flight hours. The plane was flown and commanded by Capt. B.W. McMillan, and copiloted by both Capt. David Colby and C. Ellison, all experienced pilots. The "Star Tiger" was enroute from England to Bermuda, but had a fuel layover in the Azores. At 03:15 hours on January 31, Capt. McMillan requested a bearing on Bermuda. The request was routine, and there was no panic or cause for alarm. After receiving the bearings, Capt. McMillan gave an estimated arrival time at 05:00. That was the last contact with the "Star Tiger".
A British South AMerican Tubor IV four-motor passenger plane, a converted Lancaster bomber, called the Star Tiger, flying from the Azores to Bermuda, disappeared on January 29, 1948. It carried a crew of six and twenty-five passengers, including Sir rthur Coningham, a British World War II air marshal and fromer commander of the Second Tactical Air Force of the R.A.F The Star Tiger was scheduled to land at Kindley Field, Bermuda and at 10:30 pm shortly before ETA (estimated time of arrival), the pilot radioed the control tower a message including the words "eather and performance excellent" and "Expect to arrive on schedule". The plane's position was reported as 380 miles northeast of Bermuda.
There was no further messages but the Star Tiger never arrived. No SOS or emergency message was received or any indication that the aircraft was not functioning perfectly under optimum conditions.
