Motorsport Memorial -

Jay Quinn

Complete name: Joseph Warren Quinn, Jr.

Birth date: 07.Apr.1932

Birth Place: Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, CA, United States

Death date: 05.Jun.1971

Death Place: Cape May County, NJ, United States

Nationality: United States

Gender: male

Age at death: 39

Event date: 05.Jun.1971

Series: National Air Races Association

Race: National Air Races at Cape May County Airport - T-6 Class Aircraft Race

Event type: race

Country: United States (New Jersey)

Venue: Cape May County Airport

Variant: 3.1-miles, six pylons (1971)

Role: pilot

Vehicle type: airplane

Vehicle sub-type: aircraft: T-6 class

Vehicle brand/model: North American SNJ-4 Texan

Vehicle number: 35

Notes:
About 15,000 spectators gathered to watch the National Air Races at Cape May County Airport, near Wildwood, New Jersey, on Saturday, 05 June 1971. The meeting was marred by the deaths of four pilots who were killed during one race. The first fatality, along with the other accident during the same race, is believed to be the worst air racing tragedy to occur in one race on a closed circuit course. The only good news is that no spectators or ground crew members were injured or killed.

Seven airplanes were competing at the Cape May County Airport in the AT-6 Class. All of the airplanes in this class were based on war surplus sales of the North American "Texan" series. The AT-6 series was designed to Army Air Force specifications, while the SNJ series were the same basic aircraft designed to U.S. Navy specifications. The Navy SNJs probably had mountings for arresting hooks for use when landing on aircraft carriers.

On the first lap Richard Minges' North American AT-6D airplane hit a pylon, losing the major part of a wing. The plane crashed and burned and Minges, 32-year-old, was killed on impact with the ground.

Four minutes after Minges' accident, on the third lap of the same event, two more planes collided and crashed, and a third plane crashed while attempting to avoid the debris from the first two planes. All three pilots involved in the second accident, Victor Stanley Baker, Edwin Snyder and Joseph Quinn, were killed. The planes were flying in close formation, about 50 feet off the ground, when the accident occurred.

A Los Angeles, California, native, Joseph Warren Quinn, Jr., mostly known as Jay Quinn, was a 39-year-old who lived in 22007 Mecate Drive, Saugus, neighborhood in Santa Clarita, California. A Los Angeles County fireman, assigned to Station 74 in Saugus. An experienced pilot for the Civil Air Patrol with the rank of lieutenant in the Squadron 35 in San Fernando, California, he had been flying the North American SNJ-4 Texan N9735Z since seven years and had started racing just one year before his death. He and his brother, Pat Quinn had flown the airplane from San Fernando Airport; california to Wildwood, New Jersey, to take part in the air race. He was survived by his wife, his two sons, his parents and his three brothers. During his funeral a formation of ten Civil Air Patrol T-6 aircrafts passed over the Santa Clara Mission Cemetery in Santa Clara, California, in his honor.

The North American SNJ-5 Texan, similar to the plane Joseph Quinn piloted in the Cape May County Airport fatal race.
Markings were different, with Registration N9735Z, and race number 35.
Photo courtesy of K. O. Eckland's Aerofiles.com

The races at the three day event were sponsored by the National Air Race Association. In 1970 the same organizers had attempted to stage air races at the same New Jersey venue, but had not been able to complete the arrangements in a timely manner. Thus, the air races held at the Cape May County Airport in 1971 are probably the only air races ever staged at that venue.

After meetings with representatives from the NTSB, the FAA, local officials, association representatives and New Jersey aeronautic department officials, the races were allowed to continue as scheduled on Sunday.

The Sunday winner of the depleted AT-6 class was Bob Mitchem of Broomfield, Colorado.

Sources:

Social Security Death Index.
1940 United States Federal Census.
California Birth Index, 1905-1995.
Newspaper Valley News (Van Nuys, CA, United States), issue of Sunday, 06 June 1971, page 10-B, article "2 Valley Area Men Die in Crash DUring Air race", retrieved by website https://www.newspapers.com/image/30348008/ .
Newspaper The New York Times (New York City, NY, United States), issue of Sunday, 06 June 1971, page ?, Special to The New York Times, article "4 Pilots Die as World War II Planes Crash in Cape May Race".
Newspaper The Philadelphia Inquirer (Philadelphia, PA, United States), issue of Sunday, 06 June 1971, pages 1 and 3, article "Fiery Crashes Kill 4 Fliers In New Jersey at Shore", by Carlo Sardella and Thomas J. Madden, of The Inquirer Staff [D1]
Newspaper The Philadelphia Inquirer (Philadelphia, PA, United States), issue of Sunday, 06 June 1971, page 3, article "Tragedy Hits Air Races 1st Time Since Revival", by Gerald Etter, of The Inquirer Staff [D1].
Newspaper Panama City News-Herald (Panama City, FL, United States), issue of Sunday, 06 June 1971, page ?, United Press International news service, article "Four Vintage Planes Crash; Pilots Killed" [H1].
Newspaper News Journal (Mansfield, OH, United States), issue of Sunday, 06 June 1971, page 1, United Press International news service, article "Four Planes Crack Up in Air Race".
Newspaper Nevada State Journal (Reno, NV, United States), issue of Sunday, 06 June 1971, page 1, United Press International news service, article "Air Race Crashes Kill Four".
Newspaper The Philadelphia Inquirer (Philadelphia, PA, United States), issue of Monday, 07 June 1971, page 1, article "10'000 Sit Hushed in Horror", by Lawrence Walsh, of The Inquirer Staff [D1].
Newspaper The Jersey Journal (Jersey City, NJ, United States), issue of Monday, 07 June 1971, page 2, United Press International news service, article "3 Air Show Crashes Cause Five Deaths", retrieved by website https://www.newspapers.com/image/907751291/ .
Newspaper The Signal (Newhall, CA, United States), issue of Monday, 07 June 1971, page 1, article "Local Pilot Killed in Air Race", retrieved by website https://www.newspapers.com/image/333349635/ .
Newspaper Valley News (Van Nuys, CA, United States), issue of Thursday, 10 June 1971, page 13, article "Funeral Rites Set Today for Air Race pilot", retrieved by website https://www.newspapers.com/image/30348547/ .
Website National Traffic Safety Board, NTSB Identification NYC71AN091, Probable Cause Report, page http://www.ntsb.gov/aviationquery/brief.aspx?ev_id=60862&key=0 .
Website Aviation Safety Network, ASN Aircraft Accident 05-Jun-1971, North American SNJ-4 Texan, page http://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=10575 .
E-mail by Jesper Hvid Petersen, dated 18 April 2011, citing [H1].
E-mail by John Durand, dated 04 October 2011, citing [D1].