24. The Aptly Named “Suicide Dive” Produced a Tragicomic Demise
A final stunt during the filming of The Skywayman called for a tailspin, known as a “suicide dive”, to be performed for a nighttime scene. It was initially supposed to flown during the daytime, with special camera filters to simulate night. However, Ormer Locklear insisted on performing the stunt at night. The studio agreed, and as news leaked out of what Locklear planned, a crowd gathered on the night of August 2nd, 1920, to watch the filming of the death-defying “suicide dive” stunt. It would have a tragicomic ending.
Searchlights were to focus on Locklear’s airplane to make it visible for filming in the dark as it entered its tailspin. However, the searchlights’ glare would force Locklear to fly blind. So after the airplane descended to a specific height, the searchlights were supposed to get switched off to allow Locklear to see, and to let him know that it was time to pull out of the tailspin. However, something went wrong, and the searchlights stayed on. Before the gaze of horrified onlookers, Locklear’s floodlit airplane began its “suicide dive” – and remained brightly lit within the searchlights’ glare, as it continued its dive straight into the ground. Locklear and a fellow pilot were instantly killed in the crash.