Unfortunately a fatal crash near Maitland Airport 17/5/20

[RenegadeMan]

https://www.newcastleherald.com.au/story/6759416/man-dies-in-light-plane-crash-near-maitland-airport/?cs=7573

[FlyingVizsla]

The ABC report

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-05-17/man-dies-light-plane-crash-near-nsw-aero-club/12257052

A man has died in a light plane crash near an aero club near Maitland in the NSW Hunter Region.

Police were called to a property in Windella, about 50 kilometres from Newcastle, after 10:15am following reports a plane had crashed in a backyard.

The man, who is yet to be identified, was the single occupant of the aircraft.

Officers have established a crime scene.

It's unclear whether the plane crashed taking off or landing but the wreckage is believed to be close to the Royal Newcastle Aero Club.

[onetrack]

The Newcastle Herald report is more informative than the ABC article. Sounds very much like a stall on approach?

 

The plane was flying low on approach to nearby Maitland Airport, also known as Royal Newcastle Aero Club, on the outskirts of Rutherford, when it banked sharply to the left and crashed in the paddock.

[RenegadeMan]

Unfortunately it does (but pure speculation of course). These sorts of accidents are a timely reminder that a stall on approach is but a few moments of inattention to airspeed during manoeuvring. If it was the classic stall during turn onto base or final then many hundreds of similar accidents have happened across the globe.

 

Updated report just now on the ABC News channel said the pilot was a member at Newcastle Aero Club. Very sorry for his family and friends.

[onetrack]

It's quite demeaning to light aircraft kit builders to see the media propagating the "homemade" aircraft tag, initiated by the NSW Ambulance Manager.

 

The term or tag, "homemade", gives an impression that kit builders are a bunch of "unqualified backyarders", and demeans everyone involved in the hobby.

 

The impression is wrong, as witnessed by many of the posts and contributors on this forum, whereby the skills and knowledge of all the contributing kitbuilders is outstanding.

 

Furthermore, the ABC article gives the impression there's no oversight or registration or checks on kitbuilt aircraft - when everyone in the hobby knows that the hobby is regulated more than any other hobby or fabrication pastime.

[pylon500]

Lot of timber everywhere, looks like it may have been an Osprey seaplane?

[kgwilson]

ABC report now states as below. The press will always say things like "home made" when we may say Amateur Built but that's life.

 

"Peter Gibson from the Civil Aviation Safety Authority said the aircraft was an Osprey 2 amphibious aircraft, bought as a kit from the manufacturer and assembled by the pilot.

 

He said it was not unusual for aviation enthusiasts to hand-make planes from kits.

 

"There would be certainly hundreds, if not around a thousand of these aircraft in the country," Mr Gibson said.

 

"It's done as a hobby. People enjoy the challenge of building the aircraft from scratch and understanding how it's all put together. Then there is the thrill of flying it."

 

He said amateur-made planes are usually checked by engineers before flying.

 

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau and police are now investigating the cause of the crash.

 

A report will be prepared for the coroner."

[old man emu]

He said amateur-made planes are usually checked by engineers before flying.

 

Why couldn't he say that planes built from kits or plans are subject to similar rigorous pre-registration inspections as Hot Rods and other modified motor vehicles have before they are allowed out on public roads?

 

The meeja never questions the build quality of a motor vehicle that leaves the road for non-mechanical reasons.

[FlyBoy1960]

If its this one its a mess

 

https://www.planesales.com.au/details/Listing/Amphibian-and-Floatplanes/5643/2014-Osprey-Osprey-2-Aircraft

[pylon500]

Flying solo...

I wonder if they (CASA/NTSB) will be able to determine the CofG at the time of the accident...

[Flightrite]

Gotta remember guys that the grubby corrupt media are selling newspapers (so to speak) so they are reporting these tragic events to the general public with sensationalism who are clueless about homebuilts etc! We are a minority group us drivers of planes. We know they don't! RIP, another hapless aviator gone to the hangar in the sky ?

[RenegadeMan]

Why couldn't he say that planes built from kits or plans are subject to similar rigorous pre-registration inspections as Hot Rods and other modified motor vehicles have before they are allowed out on public roads?

 

That's detail that Mr and Mrs Average sitting at home watching their pre-packaged 30 min news broadcast shaking their heads about "the foolhardiness of flying in a 'homemade' aircraft" are simply never going to hear about. Light aircraft already have such a chequered history for the masses many people they consider it a highly dangerous activity you'd have to be very brave to undertake. But a 'homemade' one, geez you'd have to have rocks in your head!

 

And that folks is yet another tiny example of the misinformation and fallaciousness our world is consumed by. Headline stories are a dime a dozen. Indepth analysis and accuracy, it's just not something too many are interested in anymore.

[facthunter]

A plane has crashed badly unfortunately at a drome I had a lot to do with way back, when it first opened. I think of the trauma of those who helped first at the scene and the associates and family of the deceased. We share a passion and the risks are always with us that something can go wrong "up There". Nev

[red750]

From video on the Channel 7 news I can confirm the the aircraft involved was that one in the advertisement in #9. Rego was not blurred.

[Student Pilot]

Pylon pusher, when you throttle off or lose power you get a pitch up.

[Flightrite]

Pylon pusher, when you throttle off or lose power you get a pitch up.

Pylon pusher, when you throttle off or lose power you get a pitch up.

That's detail that Mr and Mrs Average sitting at home watching their pre-packaged 30 min news broadcast shaking their heads about "the foolhardiness of flying in a 'homemade' aircraft" are simply never going to hear about. Light aircraft already have such a chequered history for the masses many people they consider it a highly dangerous activity you'd have to be very brave to undertake. But a 'homemade' one, geez you'd have to have rocks in your head!

 

And that folks is yet another tiny example of the misinformation and fallaciousness our world is consumed by. Headline stories are a dime a dozen. Indepth analysis and accuracy, it's just not something too many are interested in anymore.

[/quote

 

Whilst that's true the pitch up would not be severe or unmanageable otherwise any A/C designed like that would not be allowed to fly. There's gotta be more to this tragic event.

[Jerry_Atrick]

Sincere condolences to family and friends. Whenever something like this happens, it always reminds me that it could happen to me (and I could be the subject of this or other forums I frequent). Very few of us ever intend to go up and not come down to see our friends or family again, and worse, leaving a sad loss to them.

 

When the media portray us as a bunch of chaotic hobbyists (slight exaggeration, but you get the drift), it must hurt the loved ones even more. When I drive my car, I will admit to being a little cavalier at times.. And I would not remember the last time I looked at updates to the road laws nor have I ever thought I should get an instructor to check my bad driving habits When I am in the aeroplane, I have a totally different mindset - my son notices it - much more disciplined and attentive. If I am feeling at all rusty (which I am at the moment), it will be a trusted examiner to check me out. But that doesn't mean something won't go wrong nor I will necessarily make the right decision. It's also why I am never likely to build my onw aircraft, even though I like the idea. I just don't have the engineering where-with-all to do it and even though engineers/inspectors check your work as you go, I feel there may be something they don't spot..

 

As private flyers, on average, we don't fly regularly enough nor have as many incidents to test our decision making as we do in cars. Yet the media would as likely portray us as being somewhat less than diligent than the average car driver who I am sure disengages brain at an exponential rate to that of pressing the accelerator.

 

Maybe AOPA, RAAus and other TLA organisations should liaise more with the main media outlets to try and address this? Or maybe rather than write up any rebuke or clarification in our own publications, where at the end of the day, they will be preaching to the converted, they ensure they get out to the public through various channels clarifications and rebuking this perception of rank amateurism.

[turboplanner]

Sincere condolences to family and friends. Whenever something like this happens, it always reminds me that it could happen to me (and I could be the subject of this or other forums I frequent). Very few of us ever intend to go up and not come down to see our friends or family again, and worse, leaving a sad loss to them.

 

When the media portray us as a bunch of chaotic hobbyists (slight exaggeration, but you get the drift), it must hurt the loved ones even more. When I drive my car, I will admit to being a little cavalier at times.. And I would not remember the last time I looked at updates to the road laws nor have I ever thought I should get an instructor to check my bad driving habits When I am in the aeroplane, I have a totally different mindset - my son notices it - much more disciplined and attentive. If I am feeling at all rusty (which I am at the moment), it will be a trusted examiner to check me out. But that doesn't mean something won't go wrong nor I will necessarily make the right decision. It's also why I am never likely to build my onw aircraft, even though I like the idea. I just don't have the engineering where-with-all to do it and even though engineers/inspectors check your work as you go, I feel there may be something they don't spot..

 

As private flyers, on average, we don't fly regularly enough nor have as many incidents to test our decision making as we do in cars. Yet the media would as likely portray us as being somewhat less than diligent than the average car driver who I am sure disengages brain at an exponential rate to that of pressing the accelerator.

 

Maybe AOPA, RAAus and other TLA organisations should liaise more with the main media outlets to try and address this? Or maybe rather than write up any rebuke or clarification in our own publications, where at the end of the day, they will be preaching to the converted, they ensure they get out to the public through various channels clarifications and rebuking this perception of rank amateurism.

There is a high turnover in journalism. They come out of Uni with a degree and usually go into country papers where even there they are in a pecking order. In some Cities the newspaper might be big enough to allow them to get to know how some industries work, such as being a Court reporter, but usually when they come to work in the morning they don't know what they will be writing about, so they are never able to develop any industry knowledge, and they rarely spend enough time with any industry or sport to have enough knowledge to be biased or looking to make a statement.

 

When one of these journalists comes on the scene of an accident, they are looking for Knowledgeable People to interview.

Employers and Managers don't want to talk other than to give a short protective statement, The injured are usually left alone as are Ambulance Crews other than a final statement before they depart or a Statement from their Media representative. Fireys are also usually not contacted. They are used to getting their information from Police at other accidents not the least reason being it will be legally useable and carefully given. Usually they'll take a sentence or two from a witness, but they're aware that this is starting to get onto unreliable ground.

 

If the cop on the scene says "It's one of those little home-mades or it looks like a Cessna and the journalist writes that and files the story 30 minutes later, that's just the level of general knowledge out there, which hasn't changed in several centuries and will not change.

 

Getting back to the accident, we've had several similar accidents over the past decade or so starting with one of our RF members - all nose-up, so it might fit in with those.

[Flightrite]

Like I mentioned above we plane drivers are a minority group, media reports are aimed at the wider general public for maximum sensationalism/ effect with a resulting high audience! We the more knowledgable ones don't figure in the media's way of thinking.

[boleropilot]

one of the things I liked about the Drifter is the way they land, at least the way I was taught to land one - throttle off at end of downwind (at which stage the Drifter feels like it hit a brick wall), stick forward fast, I always kept the nose well down and flew fast (50 knots) all the way to threshold, washing off the last 20 knots in a three point attitude.

 

when I hear about this kind of accident it's just so upsetting, such a terrible waste and my condolences to the pilots family. I've read a lot about stall turns in the circuit and I wonder if it's about time we started introducing the 'military' circuit, with a nice big semi-circle after the end of the downwind leg.

 

RIP the Osprey pilot, tailwinds and clear skies m8.

[Flightrite]

We will never have military type circuits. There's a few reasons why we have traditional circuits apart from allowing multiple A/C to be able to join the Std circuit at the same time from diff directions one other main reason is being able to locate another A/C in the circuit from their position report especially whilst waiting at the holding point.

[jackc]

There is a high turnover in journalism. They come out of Uni with a degree and usually go into country papers where even there they are in a pecking order. In some Cities the newspaper might be big enough to allow them to get to know how some industries work, such as being a Court reporter, but usually when they come to work in the morning they don't know what they will be writing about, so they are never able to develop any industry knowledge, and they rarely spend enough time with any industry or sport to have enough knowledge to be biased or looking to make a statement.

 

When one of these journalists comes on the scene of an accident, they are looking for Knowledgeable People to interview.

Employers and Managers don't want to talk other than to give a short protective statement, The injured are usually left alone as are Ambulance Crews other than a final statement before they depart or a Statement from their Media representative. Fireys are also usually not contacted. They are used to getting their information from Police at other accidents not the least reason being it will be legally useable and carefully given. Usually they'll take a sentence or two from a witness, but they're aware that this is starting to get onto unreliable ground.

 

If the cop on the scene says "It's one of those little home-mades or it looks like a Cessna and the journalist writes that and files the story 30 minutes later, that's just the level of general knowledge out there, which hasn't changed in several centuries and will not change.

 

Getting back to the accident, we've had several similar accidents over the past decade or so starting with one of our RF members - all nose-up, so it might fit in with those.

 

Todays journalists are not what they once were, a university degree does not make a journalist whereas years ago they were a cadet who started at the bottom and worked up. They were investigative, hounds for information and many did their own camera work. Now, a quick story which is laundered for some headline grabbing statement and if they are real lazy, a file photo or two will get thrown in for good measure. Get lucky if today’s stories have real-time photos to back them up.

sorry, but I have no time for modern media reporting.......

[planedriver]

I tend to read Nine News online and find it frustrating how many spelling mistakes/typo's you get every single day.

Not only is the journalism poor in many cases, but proof-reading if it still exists, seems non-existent,

[KRviator]

The removed Planesales ad says it was still undergoing Phase 1 testing while being offered for sale...I wonder how many hours it had at the time of the incident?

[turboplanner]

Todays journalists are not what they once were, a university degree does not make a journalist whereas years ago they were a cadet who started at the bottom and worked up. They were investigative, hounds for information and many did their own camera work. Now, a quick story which is laundered for some headline grabbing statement and if they are real lazy, a file photo or two will get thrown in for good measure. Get lucky if today’s stories have real-time photos to back them up.

sorry, but I have no time for modern media reporting.......

Those that graduate still then progress up through that same way, but print media has been decimated by electronic news.

On some papers the Editor is writing the stories, so naturally the stories are not going to have the same input that was available in the past.

Investigative reporting is a different field and I work regularly with about four who are the super-hounds like the ones you are talking about it.

They will work on a story for years and phone in the middle of the night wanting to build evidence.

The problem the investigative people have is that the money has gone out of newspapers, and where in the past they might have back up and even staff, and access to spend money on helicopters and things like overseas and interstate investigations, today that's all gone.