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The flight went well at first. Harriet rounded Boston Light and came back over the field at about 3000 feet, then circled while slowly descending to 1000 feet over the Bay. Suddenly the plane dove sharply, and Willard was thrown from his seat. Without his weight the Bleriot momentarily righted itself, but then flipped over, tossing out Harriet also. The two landed in about five feet of water, and both were killed. Ironically, the plane came out of its dive and glided to a landing with relatively little damage.

Blanche Scott was in the air at the time, competing for the women's duration prize. She abandoned her attempt after the accident and landed her aircraft. 

There was a great deal of speculation by leading aviation authorities as to the cause of the tragedy: Leo Stevens blamed Willard, thinking he probably ignored his advice and leaned forward to congratulate Harriet on a successful flight; Earle Ovington thought that one of the two left-hand control wires had become entangled in the warping lever; Lincoln Beachey speculated that Harriet may have fainted or that she had attempted to descend at too steep an angle; Glenn Martin pointed out that had Harriet and Willard been using seat belts, the accident might not have occurred.