Inquiries & Recommendations

Ngā ketuketutanga me ngā tūtohunga

No report was published, one safety recommendation was issued.

The pilot hired the two seat aircraft for a local flight with the intention of flying over Glenbrook where his passenger lived. A number of witnesses saw the aircraft flying in the area at a moderately low height and circling around. It particularly attracted attention when the engine sound was heard to change, described variously as throttled back, or stopping briefly, then increasing. The aircraft was seen to turn left from a southerly heading toward the north-east. It then went suddenly into a very steep dive while turning or twisting to the left.

[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.]

In August 2016, bulk cargo ship Molly Manx was inbound to Dunedin (Ravensbourne pier) with a harbour pilot on board. On approach to the narrow passage between the Halfway Islands, the ship ran aground on a sandbank. Damage was limited to the bottom paintwork. Nobody was injured. Key lessons are that a bridge team must: work with the pilot on route (planning and monitoring); incorporate pilots into bridge resource management; and ensure they can be warned of risks by a correctly configured electronic chart display and information system.

On 4 September 2010 the pilot of a Walter Fletcher aeroplane (the aeroplane) with eight parachutists on board lost control during take-off from Fox Glacier aerodrome. The aeroplane, registered ZK-EUF, crashed in a paddock adjacent to the runway, killing all nine occupants. The aeroplane had been modified from an agricultural aeroplane into a parachute-drop aeroplane three months before the accident. The modification had been poorly managed, and discrepancies in the modification documentation were not detected by the Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand, which approved the change in role.

[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.]

In the early morning of 7 March 2007, while fishing about 195 nm off the west coast of the North Island, the longline fishing vessel Walara-K took on water in its engine room and sank in 500 m of water within 3 hours. The 3 crew members were able to abandon ship into a liferaft from which they were rescued within 6 hours. The vessel was not recovered. The loss of the vessel and the absence of key documents have resulted in the Transport Accident Investigation Commission (the Commission) being unable to determine the exact reason for the ship

On Tuesday, 7 January 2003, at about 1928, a passenger who had alighted from an electric multiple unit train at Paekakariki was injured as she got down off a wagon of an express freight train. The freight train was berthed at the platform at Paekakariki and blocking access via a pedestrian crossing over the railway line to the public car park. The injured passenger was one of a number of passengers who climbed over the flat deck wagon to gain access to the car park beyond. The passenger suffered a serious ankle injury, which required hospital treatment.

The Seabourn Encore was berthed at PrimePort Timaru. In strong south westerly winds, a number of wharf mooring bollards and ship mooring lines progressively failed allowing the ship to swing off the berth and collided with a nearby cement carrier. Nobody harmed, but some damage to wharf infrastructure and both ships. Final Report addresses matters concerning mooring equipment; mooring procedures; and planning for, and responding to, a change in the weather. Recommendations apply both locally and nationwide to all ports in New Zealand.

The pilot was transporting a tramper and his gear to a mountain hut situated at an elevation of about 4750 feet. There was no helipad so he elected to land on a nearby tussock covered saddle. In the final stages of a shallow approach the pilot realised that main rotor rpm had decayed. Full throttle failed to restore rpm, and as the pilot considered he was committed to land, he increased collective but was unable to prevent a heavy touchdown. The helicopter pitched nosedown and fell on to its right side. Neither occupant was injured.

On 17 January 1994 NZRL Train 1604 struck a three-year-old pedestrian at Featherston. No specific safety issues were addressed.

On Monday 3 March 1997 at 1014 hours, Cessna 185F ZK-PRM became airborne from runway 16 at Wellington International Aerodrome, behind a Boeing 727 which had departed directly ahead. The Cessna encountered wake turbulence which caused the pilot to lose control of the aircraft at a height from which recovery was not possible. Neither of the two occupants was injured but the aircraft was substantially damaged. The pilot took-off from a mid-point runway position and had requested and been granted a waiver of the wake turbulence separation standards.