Inquiries & Recommendations

Ngā ketuketutanga me ngā tūtohunga

On Thursday 29 November 2001, at about 0930, Cessna A185E Skywagon ZK-JGI took off from Motueka Aerodrome on a local parachuting flight. Shortly after take-off, at about 100 feet, ZK-JGI had a sudden and total power loss. Unable to re-establish power, the pilot guided the aircraft to a nearby kiwifruit orchard. After clipping trees the aircraft struck the ground heavily, resulting in the pilot and 4 parachutists receiving serious injuries and 1 parachutist sustaining minor injuries. The power loss was due to the pilot inadvertently selecting the fuel Off before the flight.

On Friday 16 November 2001, at about 0445, the yacht "Toolka-T" fouled the towline between the tug "Wainui" and barge "Sea-Tow 11" and was carried along the towline until it collided with the bow of the barge. The "Toolka-T" passed under the barge and sank as a result of the collision. The collision occurred off Takatu Point while the "Toolka-T" was southbound towards Gulf Harbour and the "Wainui" was northbound from Auckland to a sand excavation site north of Cape Rodney.

On Wednesday 31 October 2001, at about 0800, Air National Chieftain ZK-RDT, operating as Origin 457, was on a scheduled passenger flight from New Plymouth to Auckland when the cabin door opened in flight. Passengers held the door in a slightly ajar position for about 10 minutes while the aeroplane was landed at Auckland. The incident resulted from wear and distortion of door latch components, which had not been detected and rectified.

[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.]

On Wednesday 19 September 2001, at about 0705, a collision occurred between a light locomotive and a private motorcar at Egmont Tanneries Ltd private level crossing between Stratford and Inglewood on the Marton to New Plymouth Line. The motor vehicle had made a right-hand turn from State Highway 3 which ran parallel to the railway line and entered the unprotected level crossing immediately in front of the approaching locomotive.

On Friday, 14 September 2001, at about 0325, 2 trans Cook Strait ships, the passenger and freight ferry "Arahura" and the cargo ship "Kent", encountered each other at the eastern entrance to Tory Channel. The outward-bound "Kent" had given the inward-bound "Arahura" permission to enter, in order that they might pass each other inside the entrance. The master of the "Kent" subsequently had difficulty maintaining control at slow speed and ventured into the area of restricted navigation at the entrance to Tory Channel, which hindered the safe navigation of the "Arahura".

At about 0615 on Thursday, 13 September 2001, an unattached loaded log wagon on the leading end of a shunt being propelled into a siding at Stillwater was routed onto the main line at a damaged turnout and rolled 450 m downgrade on the Midland Line. Thick fog was present at the time and the loss of the wagon was not realised until 0645 and it was not located until 0700. The safety issues identified included: • rail service operations being carried out by non-qualified contractors at Stillwater

On Tuesday, 11 September 2001, at about 1130, ZK-HWI, a Bell Jetranger 206B II helicopter took off normally for a chemical spraying flight. On board the helicopter were an instructor pilot and a trainee who was the pilot flying the helicopter. Shortly after take-off, when the helicopter was climbing away, the drive to the engine power turbine tachometer generator failed, causing the power turbine gauge indication to decrease. The instructor pilot, believing the helicopter was losing power, immediately took control of the helicopter and instinctively lowered the collective lever.

On Friday 31 August 2001 at about 1440, the commercial jet boat "Shotover 21" was proceeding down Shotover River at about 60 km/h with the driver and 11 passengers on board, when the engine stopped suddenly. With no propulsion the driver lost directional control of the boat and it continued in a straight line for some 60 m before colliding with a rock face at about 30 km/h. Five of the passengers suffered serious injuries, the other passengers suffered minor injuries and the driver was unhurt. The boat was extensively damaged.

On Sunday 19 August 2001 at about 0710, the fishing vessel "Hans" ran aground on West Head at the entrance to Tory Channel while on passage from the fishing grounds in Cook Strait to Picton. The skipper was able to transmit a mayday call before he and the 5 crew boarded the life raft. They were rescued uninjured shortly after by another vessel before the "Hans" sank. Safety issues identified included: • the inadequate watchkeeping arrangements aboard the Hans • the manning level of the "Hans" for the operation undertaken

On Wednesday 15 August 2001 at about 0930 hours, Train 2621, an Upper Hutt to Wellington electric multiple unit passenger service, departed prematurely from Ava station with the doors on the passenger cars open. The train travelled about 200 m with the doors open before the Tranz Metro Driver became aware of the situation and brought it to a halt. There were no injuries to passengers or staff. The safety issues identified included: • the training and certification of new entrant staff for guard duties • the procedures for Tranz Metro Drivers to follow before departing stations

[No report published by TAIC. TAIC provided local information for an investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board USA into Eurocopter AS350-B2 collision with terrain in Grand Canyon Arizona USA. Refer NTSB aircraft accident brief LAX01MA272.]