Inquiries & Recommendations

Ngā ketuketutanga me ngā tūtohunga

[Assisting overseas investigation - no TAIC report published]

On Friday 6 May 2005, at about 0720, pier 4 of Bridge 256 between Nuhaka and Opoutama on the Palmerston North-Gisborne Line suffered a catastrophic failure and collapsed while work Train 60 was being piloted across the bridge at the start of a 2-day work programme to underpin pier 4. A 60-tonne rail crane and the adjacent ends of spans 3 and 4 fell into the river. There were 10 staff members making up the work gang, but because they had been moved off the bridge before the work train started to cross, there were no injuries.

On Wednesday 9 February 2005 and Sunday 20 February 2005, incidents involving steering malfunctions occurred on board the passenger freight ferry "Aratere" while the vessel was on passage between Picton and Wellington. In both incidents, the steering gear operating the port rudder failed to respond to command signals from the navigating bridge. However, in both incidents the navigation of the vessel was continued safely using the starboard steering gear and rudder. Because of the similarities arising from each incident, both incidents have been combined into one report.

On Friday 23 June 2006 at about 0627, the Lady Luck, was returning from a fishing trip in bad weather when it collided with Black (Matatapu) Rock near the southern extremity of Motiti Island. The Skipper of the vessel was able to transmit a distress call on very high frequency channel 16 before he and the other 3 persons on board boarded the liferaft and the vessel sank. Maritime Radio, the Coastguard, the operations centre of the Port of Tauranga and another fishing vessel all received the distress message.

At 0957 on 7 October 2013, a Royal New Zealand Air Force Boeing 757 departed Christchurch for Pegasus Field aerodrome in Antarctica. There were 117 passengers and 13 crew on board. The passengers included a New Zealand Government Minister, staff from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, and staff from Antarctica New Zealand and the United States Antarctic Program.

On Wednesday, 6 November 1996, at approximately 0648 hours Train 6210, a northbound suburban Electric Multiple Unit service, was stopped by a red signal aspect on the double-track section south of McKays. The Train Control Officer had almost completed the process of issuing a Mis. 59 authority to allow the train to pass the Departure signal at "Stop" and enter the single line section ahead when the locomotive engineer of Train 6210 saw Train 203, the southbound Northerner passenger express, approaching him on the single line section he was about to receive authority to enter.

This report explains the in-flight failure of the wing of Class 1 microlight aircraft ZK-FKY on 25 January 1994. Safety issues discussed relate to the design of the aircraft.

[No official abstract. The following is derived from the report.] The glider took off on tow with the airbrakes open. At 20 feet after take-off the glider pilot saw the tug aircraft signalling with its rudder and interpreted this as a signal to cast off. He did so, and turned back towards the aerodrome. The tailplane was damaged when the aircraft clipped the fence as it crossed the boundary. When the aircraft came to a halt the pilot realised the brakes were still open. A safety recommendation was made to the President of the New Zealand Gliding Association.

After the float equipped aircraft touched down earlier than the pilot had anticipated, it nosed over and sank.

On Friday 28 October 2005, at about 1547, Taieri Gorge Railway passenger Train 1910, travelling from Middlemarch to Dunedin with a crew of 4 and 21 passengers, parted between the leading passenger car XPC412 and passenger car XPC562 as the train approached Dunedin Station. After the train parted, the brakes applied automatically and the 2 sections of the train stopped about 40 metres (m) apart. The train parting resulted from the catastrophic failure of the buffer at a flash butt weld that connected the cast coupler head and forged tail.

[A preliminary investigation showed that the circumstances were not likely to have significant implications for transport safety. Consistent with section 13 of the TAIC Act the Commission discontinued the investigation and no report was published.]

[A preliminary investigation showed that the circumstances were not likely to have significant implications for transport safety. Consistent with section 13 of the TAIC Act the Commission discontinued the investigation and no report was published.]