In 1922, two commercial planes collided over France, killing everyone on board. After two planes collided in April 1922, wreckage was scattered across the French countryside. On April 7, 1922, American newlyweds Christopher and Mary Yule were wrapping up their honeymoon in France

In 1922, two commercial planes collided over France, killing everyone on board.

In April 1922, after two planes collided, wreckage was scattered across the French countryside.

On April 7, 1922, American newlyweds Christopher and Mary Yule were nearing the end of their honeymoon in France. The couple, both employees of a Boston candy store, had sailed from New York to Europe after their February wedding and were en route to London. On the way home. Although they had already booked train and boat tickets to the UK, the Christmas couple decided at the last minute to fly across the English Channel. Together with the French passenger Monsieur Boulez, they boarded the Farman Goliath biplane at Paris-Le Bourget airport and flew daily at noon on the Grands Express Aériens with pilot Jean Mire. Settling in on the flight to Croydon, south London. A mechanic sat with the pilot, increasing the aircraft's occupancy to five people.

Meanwhile, a British de Havilland DH 18A biplane from Croydon was flying south to France, following a scheduled mail route to Le Bourget. Controlling Robin E. Duke, a Royal Air Force lieutenant and "composer of some repute," as Associated Press describes him. There was also a cabin boy on board, Edward Hesterman.

The weather in northern France was terrible, with drizzle and fog blocking visibility. Both aircraft flew close to the ground, maintaining course along the tracks. At about 1:15 p.m., near the town of Thieuloy-Saint-Antoine, 70 miles north of Paris, witnesses saw two planes suddenly emerge from the fog at 500 feet and fly directly toward each other. As the New York Times reported, "Those watching had no time to think before a sinister crash rang out in the sky" and the two planes "crashed to the ground, burning up." All seven people on board both planes were killed in the first mid-air collision between two commercial airliners.

Some witnesses reported that the DH 18A deviated from the generally accepted flight path, flying too far to the left. Later that month, France, Britain and the Low Countries established clear air routes and stipulated that aircraft should always pass to the right. As London's Guardian reports, "So even in poor visibility, when the two pilots were keeping a close eye on their land line while flying in opposite directions, each of them was well away to the right of the land line. The fact of flying prevents any risk of a collision like the one that occurred on Thieuloy St. Antoine” – a collision that claimed the lives of seven people one hundred years ago in April.