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Crash of a De Havilland DHC-4A Caribou in Efogi
Date & Time:
Sep 5, 2008
Operator:
Registration:
A4-285
Survivors:
Yes
MSN:
285
YOM:
1969
Crew on board:
0
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
0
Circumstances:
Damaged beyond repair following structural failure due to fatigue upon landing at Efogi, PNG. There were no injuries but the aircraft was damaged beyond repair and dismantled.
Crash of a Boeing 707-368C off Woodside Beach: 5 killed
Date & Time:
Oct 29, 1991 at 1147 LT
Operator:
Registration:
A20-103
Survivors:
No
Schedule:
Richmond - §Avalon
MSN:
21103
YOM:
1975
Flight number:
Windsor 380
Crew on board:
5
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
5
Circumstances:
The aircraft departed Richmond on a flight to Avalon, carrying five crew members. While cruising at an altitude of 5,000 feet along the coast, the aircraft lost height and plunged in the sea. The wreckage was found about one km off Woodside Beach and all five occupants were killed. At the time of the accident, weather conditions were good.
Crew:
Cpt Mark Lewin, pilot,
F/Lt Tim Ellis, copilot,
F/Lt Mark Duncan, pilot,
W/O Jon Fawcett, flight engineer,
W/O Al Gwynne, loadmaster.
Crew:
Cpt Mark Lewin, pilot,
F/Lt Tim Ellis, copilot,
F/Lt Mark Duncan, pilot,
W/O Jon Fawcett, flight engineer,
W/O Al Gwynne, loadmaster.
Probable cause:
The Board of Inquiry concluded that the instructor devised a demonstration of asymmetric flight that was 'inherently dangerous and that was certain to lead to a sudden departure from controlled flight' and that he did not appreciate this. The Board noted there were deficiencies in the acquisition and documentation of 707 operational knowledge within the RAAF combined with the absence of effective mechanisms to prevent the erosion of operational knowledge at a time when large numbers of pilots were resigning from the air force. There was no official 707 QFI conversion course and associated syllabus and no adequate QFI instructors' manual. There were deficiencies in the documented procedures and limitations pertaining to asymmetric flight in the 707 and a lack of fidelity in the RAAF 707 simulator in the flight regime in which the accident occurred, which, assuming such a requirement existed, required actual practise in flight. 'The captain acted with the best of intentions but without sufficient professional knowledge or understanding of the consequences of the situation in which he placed the aircraft,' the Board said.
Crash of a Lockheed P-3C Orion off Cocos Islands: 1 killed
Date & Time:
Apr 26, 1991
Operator:
Registration:
A9-754
Survivors:
Yes
MSN:
185-5662
YOM:
1978
Crew on board:
4
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
17
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
1
Circumstances:
The aircraft was engaged in a local flight and was carrying 17 passengers and a crew of four. After takeoff from Cocos Island Airport, the crew climbed to 5,000 feet then reduced his altitude for a low pass over the airport. Approaching the airport at a speed of 380 knots and at a height of about 300 feet, the pilot-in-command increased engine power in a way to gain height when the aircraft lost several pieces from the left wing. Due to severe vibrations and problems of controllability, the crew decided to attempt an emergency landing near the airport. The aircraft struck the ground, lost its undercarriage and came to rest in shallow water. A passenger was killed after being hit by propeller blades that punctured the fuselage. All 20 other occupants escaped uninjured and the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.
Probable cause:
Forced landing following severe vibrations after several elements from the left leading edge detached in flight.
Crash of a GAF Nomad N.24A at Edinburgh AFB: 1 killed
Date & Time:
Mar 12, 1990
Operator:
Registration:
A18-401
Survivors:
No
Schedule:
Edinburgh AFB - Edinburgh AFB
MSN:
128
YOM:
1982
Crew on board:
1
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
1
Aircraft flight hours:
300
Circumstances:
The pilot, sole on board, was completing a local training flight at Edinburgh AFB. On approach, the tail separated and the aircraft dove into the ground and crashed near the airfield. The aircraft was destroyed and the pilot F/Lt Glenn Kemshall Donovan was killed.
Probable cause:
After being manufactured in 1982, the airplane was used by GAF (renamed Aerospace Technologies of Australia - ASTA in 1987) for testing. Amongst others, service records indicated 177 hours of single engine ground running. This meant that the airplane was subjected to many high frequency asymmetric cycles. Cracks initiated and grew predominately due to torsional loading. Upon delivery to the RAAF, the airplane was inspected but this failed to detect significant cracking. The tailplane centre section failed in flight, 19 hours after the inspection.
Crash of a Douglas C-47B-35-DK at Edinburgh AFB
Date & Time:
Oct 17, 1986
Operator:
Registration:
A65-114
Survivors:
Yes
MSN:
16712/33460
YOM:
1945
Crew on board:
0
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
0
Circumstances:
Just after liftoff, both engines failed simultaneously. The aircraft stalled and hit the runway surface. On impact, the left main gear collapsed and the aircraft came to rest. There were no casualties but the aircraft was considered as damaged beyond repair and later transferred to the South Australian Aviation Museum in Port Adelaide.
Probable cause:
Double engine failure for unknown reasons.
Crash of a De Havilland DHC-4 Caribou in Camden
Date & Time:
Jul 4, 1986
Operator:
Registration:
A4-264
Survivors:
Yes
Schedule:
Camden - Camden
MSN:
264
YOM:
1968
Crew on board:
0
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
0
Circumstances:
The crew was completing a local training flight at Camden Airport. On final approach, the pilot-in-command initiated a go-around when the aircraft stalled and crashed. There were no casualties while the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.
Crash of a De Havilland DHC-4 Caribou inKudjeru Gap: 25 killed
Date & Time:
Aug 28, 1972 at 1430 LT
Operator:
Registration:
A4-233
Survivors:
Yes
Schedule:
Lae - Port Moresby
MSN:
233
YOM:
1965
Crew on board:
3
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
26
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
25
Circumstances:
The aircraft was completing a flight from Lae to Port Moresby, carrying three crew members and 26 cadets of the PNG Army. After passing over Wau in good weather conditions, the pilot decided to enter the Kudjeru Gap Valley when the weather conditions worsened rapidly with clouds up to 10,500 feet. At an altitude of 5,000 feet while trying to gain height, the right wing struck trees and the aircraft crashed on the slope of a mountain, about 50 meters below the summit. The wreckage was found three days later. Five injured passengers were evacuated but one of them died from his injuries.
Probable cause:
The pilot entered an area of low visibility and the accident was the consequence of a controlled flight into terrain.
