Merged: Single Engine Acft Prang - Brooker Hwy Hobart
 

Plane crash lands on busy Hobart road - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

A light plane has crash landed on one of Hobart's busiest roads.
The plane came down on a section of the Brooker Highway linking central Hobart to the northern suburbs.

Police say no-one has been injured.

It's understood the pilot freed himself from the wreck and began re-directing traffic.

An onlooker Brad Almond says the scene is a mess.

"I'm currently looking at a single propeller light aircraft that has crashed on to the Brooker Highway. There is debris spread about 100 metres either side of the aircraft on the road. A wing has been sheared off." :eek:

The Mercury has a photo
http://www.themercury.com.au/images/...crash-wide.jpg
Plane crashes on Brooker Hwy Today's News - The Mercury - The Voice of Tasmania

Victa Airtourer from the local aeroclub. Good to see know one hurt.

Edit: ah startingout got in just before me.

Was this on the wrong side of the road or do we think it spun around? (Don't worry I'm always right of centreline.)

Looks like a crash made survivable so kudos to the pilot for that part anyway.

FRQ CB

Suspected engine failure - pilot landed in the traffic direction - appears to have hit the left wing into the bank spinning the aircraft around.

Pilot shaken but unhurt. Good effort on his part. :ok:

RAAF Trainee CT4 Crash Hobart?`
 

Anyone know what happened?? Looks a bit worse for wear on the Hwy?

http://www.themercury.com.au/images/...h-wide-new.jpg

you sure that it's a raaf trainee? The CT4 training base is in Tamworth, not Hobart.

The aircraft doesn't even have the BAE systemes paint scheme, instead a PC9 look-a-like paint scheme.

Try looking at the next forum, not the reporting points one.

Not RAAF or CT-4, it's a Victa Airtourer of some sort.

The CT4B does have a 2-bladed prop, but constant speed.

Its a VICTA AIRTOURER 115/A1
first rego in australia 22 july 1965
registered operator AS OF 18 NOV 2006 AERO CLUB OF SOUTHERN TASMANIA
anyone else on this site actually fly planes ? lol !!

Just noted on the Ninemsn site;

and,
Journos; Don't you just love them?:rolleyes:

I hear through the grape vine that the prang were caused by the thermo-plating letting go in the degauzer control. As we all know, its a fairly common problem with them Victa's.



.

I think you're onto something there Binghi- Lycoming engine, same as the engine in the Warrior at moorabbin the other day.....I guess the same thermo-plating in each case???:eek:

Patrick's a good kid. Glad to see he's ok!

Ch7 Melb news had eye witnesses saying he "circled for a long time", interesting wouldn't have been 'long' enough for the hapless pilot:). Senior Police apparently where not happy with the pilot landing on the hwy preferring him to land somewhere else like an oval just down the road! Very poor comments from someone whom should know better!
If you had to crash I guess something as light & robust as the old Aussie pop riveted Victa would be one of the best to do it in:ok:


Wmk2

Boss of the local police was just on the TV suggesting that the pilot made a poor choice of landing area as there were hockey fields and other landing areas nearby. Whilst I'd normally suggest that the cop has no idea I'm kinda thinking he's not far off the mark with this one. For me a road would be the last place I'd go for as apparently he had a long glide time and had options available.

MTC....Its had a 'good history'......

I trained two guys on it at Yalleen Station, near Pannawonica WA, in 1970....

I handed it back in one piece.....

T'was a 'bit underpowered' though, in the heat of the Pilbara.... :ok::ok:

I wonder if its gunna eventually fly agin..??

Airtourer.....Glide....??....!!..??

They were not called the "concrete sparrow" for nothing, as opposed to the "plastic parrot" CT4.

I believe that a bad L/D makes glide approach easy as whatever you are looking at out the front in your 45 degree descent is where you are going, no ifs and buts. no matter about other choices of landing site, he done good to walk (run) away, that's all that counts. the moment the engine stops the insurance company now owns the plane, just look after your self, as this young guy did, well done mate, hope it's your last real one.

HD

The ovals and hockey grounds were not an option. There are goal posts and light standards around them as well as very limiting approaches which include blocks of flats, grandstands, trees and the Hobart Domain, a fairly substantial piece of real estate that could really mess up your day.

The police officer concerned was very tired having attended a two car collision involving 8 people and was still on duty. He also had to wait for a forensic officer to get to the site to photograph it. This may have contributed to his shortness.

The pilot did an excellent job in putting it on the ground in one piece and if it hadn't been the Victa's inability to take a bend in the highway it might still be in one piece. The port wing just caught a tree and slewed the aircraft left where the wing then caught a lamp post throwing the aircraft onto the footpath and damaging the undercarriage.

The "running" away was to try and warn oncoming traffic that there was an unusual hazard on the road. He certainly did not run away from the scene. As to circling for some time I suggest this was probably before the problem occurred requiring an emergency landing. Victa's don't glide well.

Incidentally, the aircraft had been fitted with a 150 hp motor and I doubt that it will fly again unless someone wants a project.

To answer your question Wombat Keeper, yes! We do fly aeroplanes, f****n big ones! Glad the young fella not only walked away but had the sense to prevent a road accident as well. I'm sure he'll do well once he's in charge of one of our new birds some dark stormy night when you're at home in bed cuddling the missus.

But you weren't in the cockpit with your hand on the yoke, ummm stick, that thing in the middle.

I'm not making any judgement on the pilot's decision to land on the highway, but here's a map of the area showing the proximity to fields close by. A news article says it crash landed near Cleary Gates and the photo above shows the turn off to Park St so this should give an idea of where the forced landing area is located.

Google Map of the area.

There is NO such thing in a Victa as a "long glide time" .

From my recollection of having flown the 100HP one, I always thought they should have put some plexi-glass in the floor so you could judge the aiming point better . The 150Hp one might only glide a tiny bit better due to slightly extra weight.

He did pretty good under the circumstances. I certainly wouldn't like the chances he was presented with :eek:
While one could say that he should have been high enough to be able to glide to safety in the event of an engine failure, I would contend that for most places around Hobart, a Victa's service ceiling isn't high enough to ensure that.

and no-one else is pointing out that this is the same Victa that was landed on a beach a couple of months ago... quite the history this one...

Strong little buggers aren't they?

Ghost W said....
Comments withdrawn - incorrect source.

triadic, this was the same aircraft but the previous incident where the aircraft was landed on a beach was not engine related. The one yesterday was.

tinpis, yep they sure are tough little buggers.

The wing was torn off quite close to the cockpit but there is no obvious damage to the fuselage apart from scrapes although may be some where the spar runs through under the cockpit. There was no rippling down the sides of the fuselage and the canopy still slid easily on the tracks.

For those of you who looked at the Google Map, you need to slide it northwards until you can see the quarter cloverleaf flyover on the Brooker Highway. The site was just to the south (or to the bottom of the frame) of that intersection.

For those who think that the site labelled Cornelian Bay Sports Ground would be the best option, there are tall trees on the approach from over the water and power lines; the Brooker Highway is built on an earth embankment on the far side with light posts on both sides; the site marked Stainforth Court is public housing flats and is built on higher ground; the Cornelian Bay cemetery is built on high ground. The other sports fields there are not an option and the hockey grounds are surrounded by lamp standards for playing night games.

A very experienced Victa pilot may have been able to get down on the Cornelian Bay Sports Ground but would need to have been absolutely exact with their flying. The option chosen by the pilot yesterday was, in my opinion better given all the circumstances.

The TV news keeps saying he's a RAAF trainee - obviously not a RAAF aircraft, so is he AirTC, a RAAFie doing some weekend flying in a VH aircraft or is it just the great journalism we know and love wrt flying stories?

According to news reports he was "recently accepted into the RAAF" and was home for the Easter break. Flying over the Hobart CBD a few weeks ago I was looking around at places to make a forced landing, obviously there are very few options available. One of the best places in my opinion is the area of grass around the Hobart Cenotaph, though that might not have been reachable. It's hard to say whether he took the best option or not as know one knows what his actual height or position was when the engine failed. All's well that ends well.

A bloody good effort in a machine that is not famous for its outstanding glide performance. 10 out of 10!:ok:

Not unless they changed the wing - it would simply go down the same angle but faster.:}

Bit like Max Power...there are three ways to do things, the right way, the wrong way and the Max Power way.

Isn't that the wrong way?

Yeah, but faster.:D

I love the mainstream media letters.
 

Trainee pilot crashes on busy highway | The Australian

Read what Graeme of Tara reckons should happen to young Patrick. I predict Graeme will turn out to be either retired CASA or RAAF navigator.

Wanchor.

You're correct Scavenger but only in zero wind.

However, the fractionally different speed may have served better into a head wind. (yes, academic I know, but it WAS a throw away line:}).

Looking at the aircraft and his options, I think it was a terrific job.
have done 13 forced landings now, (not counting about the three thousand+ in gliders) and none were anywhere near that challenging.

And yes the Victa is a tough old bird :ok:

"have done 13 forced landings now..."

Ever thought of changing the plugs?

From The Australian site previously mentioned:
It was a VICTA, not a Victor; there has been nothing stated that he was performing aerobatics over the city; it has not been stated WHEN the engine failed and if the circling was before or after said failure. Why so keen to saddle up the tumbril and prepare Madame Guilotine? Perhaps we could await some FACTS from the people who will be investigating the incident, and in the meantime celebrate that the guy survived and no-one was hurt - unlike the ultralite crash on the same day that claimed a life:sad:.

In the heat of the moment I think the kid did a great job.

to one side there were wooded areas, so no point landing there and as for the fields on the other side, how long are they exactly and how can you be sure you have enough room to stop, also were there any people on the fields?

for an inexperienced pilot he is obviously going to aim for something that resembles a runway as close as possible, a long straight bitumen road looks similar to a runway so he knows he is going to have enough room to stop. Guess what, it was a text book forced landing, he walked away and no one was hurt which is exactly what the aim of a forced landing is to achieve

The Cop should be ridiculed for making comments on a matter he has no experience in.

Good work to the young pilot.

Graeme of Tara is basing his opinions on a seriously flawed report. Any opinion on what will happen to the pilot based on that opinion will be even more seriously flawed.

I suspect that the RAAF now has a very good idea of how this young man reacts under extreme pressure and will take that into account when deciding where he should be placed.

"I suspect that the RAAF now has a very good idea of how this young man reacts under extreme pressure and will take that into account when deciding where he should be placed."

Indeed - they'll send him off to VIP.

I agree but i think too much emphasis is put on strip length and not enough on landing under control without hitting something airborne.

This is by far the greatest concern. Much better to ht the fence at the end of the strip on the ground doing 20, 30, 40kts that to collide with anything while airborne at flying speed.

The objective of a forced landing is to ensure the safest outcome. If the aeroplane is damaged when it didn't have to be then the forced landing could've been better (less risky) even if there was no-one hurt.

I'm not saying this was the case here, though, its hard to comment on the merits of the action taken without knowing the full circumstances. Looks like the pilot put in place the procedures he was taught, hit nothing while airborne, landed under control and directed traffic once on the ground:ok: and deserves credit for doing so.

Very clever but only a short period of time would be spent gliding into wind. Most of the time would be spent at the faster speed downwind, which presents a disadvantage or across the wind, no change.

I really only commented so i could get the Homer quote in, one of my favourites...;)

Hey, I never thought of that ! Thanks WhatHo:}:ok:

Actually on a couple of them, the plugs disappeared along with the cylinder head, (Gipsy major) so they got changed then.