St. Raphael (aircraft)

The St. Raphael was a Fokker F.VIIa monoplane that was used in 1927 for a transatlantic flight from England to Canada in an attempt to be the first to cross from east to west. With the owner and financial backer Princess Anne of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Freudenberg as a passenger, the aircraft departed RAF Upavon, Wiltshire, at 7:30 on 31 August 1927 with Frederick F. Minchin and Leslie Hamilton as flight crew.^[1] The St. Raphael's last confirmed sighting was west of Ireland, approximately 1,200 nautical miles (2,200 km; 1,400 mi) from Upavon at 21:44 by the steamer Josiah Macy;^[2] around 06:00 the next morning the Dutch steamer Blijdendijik reported seeing a white light travelling eastward in the sky when about 420 nautical miles (780 km; 480 mi) east-southeast of New York City, which, if it were St. Raphael, was far to the south of its intended route, suggesting that they were lost.^[3] After a number of unconfirmed reports of sightings, the aircraft and occupants were never seen again.

St. Raphael
Fokker F.VIIa similar to the St. Raphael
General information
Type	Fokker F.VIIa
Construction number	5023
Registration	G-EBTQ
History
Fate	Lost Atlantic Ocean 1927

See also

• List of missing aircraft
• Old Glory
• W33 Bremen (Crossed East to West across Atlantic in 1928)