Oceania

On final approach to Porgera Airfield, the twin engine airplane struck trees and crashed in a dense wooded area. Both pilots and a passenger were killed while 19 other occupants were injured.

Suffered an accident somewhere in PNG. No casualties.

At 0341 hours EST on 6 July 1989, Beechcraft 80 Queen Air aircraft registered VH-XAE collided with high voltage power lines and descended rapidly, contacting the ground three kilometres north-east of Tolmie. The pilot, who was the only occupant, received fatal injuries. There was no fire. The aircraft was on a flight from Sydney to Melbourne cruising at 8000 feet. Persons in the accident area heard an aircraft flying very low over their houses, then observed a flash of light and heard the sound of ground impact. A ground search was commenced but due to falling snow and very poor visibility the wreckage was not found until about 0745 hours in daylight. The elevation of the ground at the accident site was approximately 2,700 feet above sea level.

The aircraft was scheduled to conduct three round trips between Townsville and Cape Richards, with a stop at Orpheus Island on some legs, during the day. The pilot involved in the accident flew the first and third trips and another pilot flew the second. After the first trip the pilot reported that he pumped the floats out and considered that the quantity of water removed was normal. On the third trip he picked up a "standby" passenger at Orpheus Island. On arrival at Cape Richards the scheduled six passengers were loaded. A witness employed by the resort to handle the aircraft and passengers on the island reported that the floats appeared to be sitting in the water such that the water was above the normal water line on the floats. Examination of the aircraft loading indicated that the aircraft was overweight and the centre of gravity was just inside the rear limit. The pilot reported taxiing at 1613 hours with eight persons on board. At 1624 hours he reported that he was returning to unload one passenger. In that time two takeoff attempts into the north-east were made. The wind in the bay where the attempts were made was a light northerly. The pilot again reported taxiing at 1634 hours with seven persons on board. A further two takeoff attempts were made. On the final attempt the pilot did not taxi as far into the bay as on previous occasions. The takeoff was continued well out beyond the shelter of the island into an area where the wind was easterly at about 10 knots, and the swell was 1 to 1.5 metres. The pilot reported that the aircraft had attained an indicated airspeed of 55 knots, and he intended to fly it off the water at 57 knots. The right float had lifted from the water and it hit a wave which pushed the right wing up. The pilot was unable to lift the left wing which hit the water, causing the aircraft to cart-wheel.

The crew departed Kiunga on a cargo flight to a remote area of the Western Province. En route, weather conditions deteriorated when the aircraft crashed in unknown circumstances in the region of the Fly River. Both pilots were killed.

The pilot had planned the direct track for the flight from Cockatoo Island to Derby at 5,500 feet above sea level. When the pilot gave his DEPARTURE call he amended his cruising level to below 5,000 feet. No further calls were received from the aircraft. The Cockatoo Island workboat was 56 kilometres north-north-west of Derby, and approximately 20 kilometres west of the direct track between Cockatoo Island and Derby. The crew of the boat observed an aircraft approaching at very low level. The aircraft passed over the boat approximately 5-7 metres above the deck, and entered a right hand turn. During the turn the right wing tip struck the water causing the aircraft to cartwheel and crash about 400 metres from the boat. The fuselage broke open on impact and the occupants were subsequently rescued by the crew of the boat.

The student agricultural pilot was operating under the supervision of an instructor. The aircraft had just taken off and was turning in the valley to gain height in order to clear high terrain which lay between the airstrip and the sowing area. Witnesses heard the engine misfire and saw the aircraft lose height while turning to avoid some high ground, collide with the hillside, and catch fire. The pilot, sole on board, was killed. The aircraft was destroyed.

The pilot was to conduct a charter with passengers from Sydney to Wollongong, Nowra, Canberra and return to Sydney, departing Sydney at about 10.00am. Earlier that morning he positioned the aircraft at Sydney and had it refuelled. When the passengers arrived he explained that the weather in the various destinations was very poor and that there was a possibility they may not be able to land. However, he was prepared to give it a try. As the passengers were pressed for time, they could not afford to take a chance with the weather and so they decided to drive. They told the pilot that if he could land at Wollongong later that day they would continue the flight with him. However, they impressed on him that there was no pressure for him to depart immediately as they would not be in Wollongong for several hours. After driving for a short time, the passengers decided that the weather did not appear as if it would improve, and believed that it would be better to complete the journey by car. They contacted the charter company by phone to cancel the charter, but the pilot had already departed. The flight to Wollongong appears to have proceeded normally where the pilot reported commencing an NDB approach, and would call again at a specified time. This was the last message received from the pilot. Witnesses on the ground at Wollongong, and on a yacht 20 nautical miles to the east of Wollongong reported hearing an aircraft flying at approximately 1000 to 2000 feet in the low cloud and rain. There were no other known aircraft in the area. Later that day a helicopter discovered wreckage debris in the sea, which was confirmed as being from the aircraft. The search was discontinued due to very poor weather and visibility, and cancelled two weeks later when further efforts failed to locate any trace of the aircraft.

The flight was from Koromiko via Tiraora Lodge airstrip to Wellington. ZK-SFE took off from Koromiko with one pilot and five passengers at about 1620 hours. Three of the passengers were members of the pilot’s family. It was intended to make a stop at Tiraora Lodge airstrip to pick up additional passengers before proceeding to Wellington. Enroute to Tiraora Lodge, the aircraft encountered some turbulence from the westerly wind which was established aloft. The pilot flew the aircraft on a straight-in approach to Tiraora Lodge airstrip vector 26. Out on the bay wind gusts were disturbing the water but inshore the water was calm. There was no white water in the bay and the pilot assessed the surface wind speed as ten to fifteen knots. The sun was shining across the top of the ridge of hills which lay beyond the airstrip. As its azimuth was virtually the same as the runway direction the associated glare meant the pilot was unable to see the runway. However, the shadow of the ridge appeared to lie where the runway should have been so the pilot continued the landing approach expecting the aircraft would be in shadow when it was closer to the runway threshold and thus he would be able to see to make the landing. During the approach the aircraft encountered a downdraught which required the pilot to apply power to maintain the glidepath. The company’s missed approach procedure at Tiraora Lodge was to commence a level turn to the left 200 m from the threshold, the turn being sufficiently steep to be completed over the water. Thus the aircraft would not have to clear the trees, about 130 feet high, which surrounded the Lodge. The position from which the missed approach was to be commenced was not defined in terms of landmarks. The pilot elected to maintain a height of 200 feet on the approach reasoning that if he was unable to complete the landing, he would be able to turn above the trees which would therefore not be the limiting obstacle. By this stage, the aircraft’s indicated airspeed had been reduced to less than 88 knots and the pilot “toggled” the selector switch with the intention of setting landing flap (56°). When the pilot was able to see the airstrip he was abeam its lower end, to the right of the runway. The terrain ahead of him was uneven and divided by drainage ditches and deer fences. The overrun area beyond the runway precluded a safe arrival if the aircraft could not be stopped on the runway. A climb straight ahead was not possible due to the steep rise to a ridge at 2500 feet immediately beyond the end of the runway and high ground also prevented a turn to the right. However, a left turn seemed to offer an escape route as the ground in that direction rose less steeply. The pilot therefore commenced a missed approach to the left. He applied full power, selected flap towards “TAKE-OFF” and commenced a level turn. He had to descend the aircraft to keep it flying. Although the engines were delivering full power the performance of the aircraft was much less than he expected. Because he had been having problems with the flap actuation and indication system the pilot thought the flaps might not have retracted from the “LANDING” flap position to the “TAKE-OFF’’ position properly. On recollection, after the accident, he thought he may not have selected “LANDING” flap correctly during the approach and when he selected “TAKE-OFF” on the go-around the flaps travelled from “TAKE-OFF” to the 6° down position. Although he believed the flap position indicator to be unserviceable he did not check the position of the flaps themselves visually after either selection. Witnesses on the ground commented that the aircraft seemed to be affected by turbulence on the approach, was flying very slowly as it came level with the runway threshold and that it banked steeply when it commenced its turn. Although the pilot could not recollect hearing the stall warning horn, the passengers said that it came on and sounded continuously. During the missed approach the aircraft collided with a telephone line. When the pilot felt the drag of the telephone wire, he closed the throttles. Then, when he found the aircraft was still flying, he applied full power but the aircraft pitched nose up so he reduced the power again. The aircraft descended into the water at an angle of about 25° and then floated briefly on the surface of the bay. Although the pilot had attempted to flare the aircraft it was in a nose-down attitude on impact. All of the passengers escaped or were assisted from the aircraft and taken ashore to the Lodge for first aid and dry clothes. The accident took place in daylight at about 1635 hours NZST. The accident site was Northwest Bay, Pelorus Sound.

The aircraft took off at about 0950 to spray chemicals on a 10-hectare potato crop. The flight was expected to take about 25 minutes. At 1020 when the plane had not returned to the airstrip the loader driver attempted to contact the pilot using a portable VHF transceiver. There was no response. The aircraft was found to have crashed in a level stony paddock. Physical evidence showed that the ground impact had occurred with the plane in a descending left turn and a nose down attitude. The angle of bank was 20 to 30 degrees. The outer panel of the left wing was damaged at the tip and was separated from the airframe, lying about 20 metres away. After this initial impact the plane had cartwheeled, breaking up. There was no fire. This was not a survivable accident.