01-31-2018, 11:50 AM
From the ABC...
Quote:Sydney Seaplane crash pilot's actions were 'totally inexplicable', says boss
The boss of Sydney Seaplanes has described the actions of a highly experienced pilot during New Year's Eve's deadly crash as "totally inexplicable".
Key points:
Six people died when the seaplane crashed on New Year's Eve
The ATSB has begun its investigation into the incident
Sydney Seaplanes has since resumed flights
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau today released an interim report into the crash, which killed six people north of Sydney last month.
The report has found the plane was still climbing out of the Cottage Bay area when it banked 80 to 90 degrees to the right before diving into 13-metre-deep waters killing pilot Gareth Morgan and five passengers onboard.
Sydney Planes chief executive Aaron Shaw said that was "inexplicable".
"The key question arising from the report is why the plane crashed, approximately halfway down Jerusalem Bay, which is surrounded by steep terrain and has no exit," he said.
"It is not a route we authorise in our Landing and Take-off Register and the plane simply should not have been where it was.
"Further, the aircraft is then reported to have entered into an 80 to 90 degree bank angle turn.
"A turn of this nature at low altitude by a pilot with Gareth's skill, experience and intimate knowledge of the location is totally inexplicable."
Pilot was 1km off course: report
The Sydney Seaplanes' standard flight path out of the Cottage Point area is to climb north into Jerusalem Bay before turning right towards Cowan Creek and into the body of the Hawkesbury River before high enough altitude is gained to fly over the surrounding bushland.
According to the report, the path Mr Morgan took was about 1 kilometre off that standard course.
Witnesses report that the plane flew to the left of Jerusalem Bay before taking an 80-90 degree turn and diving into the water.
Richard Cousins, 58, his two sons, Edward, 23, and William, 25, his 48-year-old fiancee Emma Bowden and her 11-year-old daughter Heather Bowden-Page, all from Britain, were killed in the crash.
Mr Cousins, who was chief executive of Compass Group, had recently been recognised by the Harvard Business Review for his work as chief executive of the multinational catering company.
Ms Bowden was the art editor at British publication OK! Magazine where she worked for 15 years.
The main body of the 55-year-old de Haviland DHC-2 Beaver, including the engine, the propeller, the floats and the tail, were recovered from Jerusalem Bay earlier this year.
All parts of the plane were taken to the Australian Transport Safety Bureau in Canberra for analysis.
Earlier it was revealed in a report from the ATSB that the craft was "destroyed" in a fatal accident 20 years ago.
The plane was once a crop duster that was involved in a serious crash near Armidale in November 1996, killing the pilot.
A final report is expected early next year.