Ignoring the issue
@Dick Smith - your issue with the military airspace is certainly worth considering -but to blame the military for the deaths of those 5 people is not even logical.
If this fact is correct -
- the pilot took off from Cooly with a dicky DI and AH
It appears the pilot's judgement on this night was very poor.
No one in their right mind contemplates flying at night with a questionable AH or DI.
The military did not make the pilot make this decision.
The military are not responsible for the decisions that go on in a cockpit.
The military didn't stop the pilot turning back, declaring an emergency, seeking help or from even staying on the ground.
Many things can contribute to unplanned events, and challenging situation but the pilot of MDX had enough experience to make better decisions than he did.
Say the changes that you'd like to see with airspace in Australia actually happen - you still have to deal with this issue of pilot decision making - because that will still kill people regardless of the airspace design.
Putting a system in place which improves pilot decision making and skills so that pilots can handle challenging situations when they do occur (because they will occur no matter how many improvements occur) is a better use of resources and energy in my opinion.