Time Out
6th Dec 2003, 09:11
One dead, another seriously injured after plane crash
06 December 2003
One person is dead and another seriously hurt after a light plane smashed into mountainous terrain near Queenstown late yesterday afternoon.
A search was launched about 5.45pm after the Cessna 172, belonging to the Wakatipu Aero Club, with two people on board, failed to return from a training flight in the mountains northwest of Queenstown.
The body of the man killed in the crash remained at the site last night, said Dennis Egerton of Heliworks, whose rescue helicopter flew to the scene.
"It was pretty rough," he said. "It was pretty turbulent."
The rescue team found the wreckage reasonably quickly after the 6pm callout because the crash happened on the route path advised by the pilot.
Mr Egerton said he could hardly see the plane which was in dense bush. He did not know who the men were.
National Rescue Co-ordination Centre (NRCC) spokesman Paul Harrison said the plane was due to arrive at the Queenstown Airport about 5.30pm. Five or 10 minutes after the plane was due back the pilot was radioed, and there was no reply.
"They have a thing called SAR (search and rescue) watch. Which means, 'if I'm not back at this time call me. If I don't answer I'm in trouble'."
The NRCC was contacted at 5.47pm and had a helicopter out by 6pm searching for the missing plane. A helicopter was dispatched to search along the plane's likely route in the mountainous regions east of Lake Wakatipu and about 7.35pm the wreckage of the plane was spotted.
The plane had crashed in steep terrain between Lake Luna and Lake Wakatipu.
A helicopter was flown on a mercy mission to the scene to rescue the survivor. It flew to Frankton Airport in Queenstown, but took off immediately after landing and flew to Dunstan Hospital, in Clyde, where the patient was transferred to the Dunedin-based Lion Foundation Rescue Helicopter.
The helicopter then flew to Dunedin with an intensive care crew on board.
It is understood poor visibility caused by heavy rain and strong northwest winds hampered the rescue mission and rescue co-ordinators grappled with whether to send the victim to intensive care at Dunedin Hospital.
Wakatipu Aero Club chief flying instructor Carlton Campbell had been asked by police not to comment on the details of the crash, but spoke of the club's concern about the incident.
"Obviously everyone is devastated that there's been an accident and are all waiting to hear the outcome."
Aero club members gathered at the club late last night to await news of the victims.
Civil Aviation Authority spokesman Bill Sommer said the authority would send two inspectors to the scene tomorrow to start to determine the cause of the crash.
"Hopefully, we will have a survivor and we can start to find out what happened. These things are very complex," he said.
source (http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,2749973a10,00.html)
06 December 2003
One person is dead and another seriously hurt after a light plane smashed into mountainous terrain near Queenstown late yesterday afternoon.
A search was launched about 5.45pm after the Cessna 172, belonging to the Wakatipu Aero Club, with two people on board, failed to return from a training flight in the mountains northwest of Queenstown.
The body of the man killed in the crash remained at the site last night, said Dennis Egerton of Heliworks, whose rescue helicopter flew to the scene.
"It was pretty rough," he said. "It was pretty turbulent."
The rescue team found the wreckage reasonably quickly after the 6pm callout because the crash happened on the route path advised by the pilot.
Mr Egerton said he could hardly see the plane which was in dense bush. He did not know who the men were.
National Rescue Co-ordination Centre (NRCC) spokesman Paul Harrison said the plane was due to arrive at the Queenstown Airport about 5.30pm. Five or 10 minutes after the plane was due back the pilot was radioed, and there was no reply.
"They have a thing called SAR (search and rescue) watch. Which means, 'if I'm not back at this time call me. If I don't answer I'm in trouble'."
The NRCC was contacted at 5.47pm and had a helicopter out by 6pm searching for the missing plane. A helicopter was dispatched to search along the plane's likely route in the mountainous regions east of Lake Wakatipu and about 7.35pm the wreckage of the plane was spotted.
The plane had crashed in steep terrain between Lake Luna and Lake Wakatipu.
A helicopter was flown on a mercy mission to the scene to rescue the survivor. It flew to Frankton Airport in Queenstown, but took off immediately after landing and flew to Dunstan Hospital, in Clyde, where the patient was transferred to the Dunedin-based Lion Foundation Rescue Helicopter.
The helicopter then flew to Dunedin with an intensive care crew on board.
It is understood poor visibility caused by heavy rain and strong northwest winds hampered the rescue mission and rescue co-ordinators grappled with whether to send the victim to intensive care at Dunedin Hospital.
Wakatipu Aero Club chief flying instructor Carlton Campbell had been asked by police not to comment on the details of the crash, but spoke of the club's concern about the incident.
"Obviously everyone is devastated that there's been an accident and are all waiting to hear the outcome."
Aero club members gathered at the club late last night to await news of the victims.
Civil Aviation Authority spokesman Bill Sommer said the authority would send two inspectors to the scene tomorrow to start to determine the cause of the crash.
"Hopefully, we will have a survivor and we can start to find out what happened. These things are very complex," he said.
source (http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,2749973a10,00.html)