Inquiries & Recommendations

Ngā ketuketutanga me ngā tūtohunga

On Thursday 3 April 1997, at 1912 hours, the Airways Corporation communications network system suffered a failure which caused a temporary loss of all Air Traffic Control very high frequency radio communications in the Wellington Sector. Subsequent modifications to the system and procedures will reduce the chance of a similar failure. A safety issue identified was the inadequacy of the "communications failure" information in the Instrument Flight Guide for pilots, in the case of a failure of communications from Air Traffic Control.

On Tuesday 1 April 1997 at 0828 hours, Cameron O-160 balloon ZK-FBS, on a passenger scenic flight, was making a go-around from a missed landing approach in foggy conditions when it contacted a power line. No injury or damage to the balloon resulted. A wind shift led to the missed landing approach. The go-around manoeuvre was insufficient or too late to avoid the power line. A safety issue addressed was the recent non-availability of Whenuapai and Ohakea weather information for pre-flight briefings.

On Saturday, 22 March 1997, at approximately 1848 hours Train 3656, a northbound suburban electric multiple unit service, collided with a car on Sutherland Avenue level crossing, Trentham. The three occupants of the car suffered minor injuries. The level crossing protection was not activated until the train was almost on the crossing. The cause of the incident was the failure of Train 3656 to stop at a signal displaying a red aspect.

On Wednesday, 12 March 1997, at about 1615 hours a roadroller entered State Highway 30 from a side road to cross Bennydale Road level crossing at Mangapehi, and moved onto the level crossing ahead of an approaching train. The level crossing alarms were operating. The driver of the roadroller was killed in the resulting collision. The cause was the driver's apparent failure to see or hear the warning devices. A safety issue identified was the suitability of control procedures for the movement of roadrollers and similar machines over level crossings.

On Wednesday 12 March 1997, at 0032 hours, Boeing 747-419 ZK-NBU was enroute from Auckland to Los Angeles as Flight NZ18. The Captain's electronic primary flight display no longer displayed flight reference information and appeared blank. An internal failure within the brake system control unit, due to water ingress, in turn caused a fault with the inertial reference unit data bus supplying information to the Captain's display. An alternate inertial reference unit was selected and it failed to supply the required information.

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.

On Saturday, 1 February 1997, at about 1030, the restricted-limit passenger ferry "Te Waka o Kapanga", while en route from Waiheke Island to Rotoroa Island, struck rocks off the point between Little and Sandy Bays on Waiheke Island. None of the 53 passengers and four crew was injured but damage to the two rudders and propulsion systems was substantial.

On Monday, 20 January 1997, at about 1255 a jet boat carrying ten passengers plus the driver, and a substantial amount of water in the cockpit, was proceeding up the Ngaawapurua (Fulljames) "Rapid", when it lost engine power, took on more water and foundered in the rapid. The 11 occupants escaped to the river bank uninjured. Causes included the driver's failure to notice the substantial amount of water in the cockpit which affected the performance of the boat, reduced the freeboard and caused the engine to stop.

[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.]

[Occurrence invesigated by TAIC for the Government of Samoa. The Secretary for Transport of Samoa approved this report for general release by TAIC.]

On Friday 3 January 1997, at 1357 hours, Cessna 310Q aeroplane ZK-KIM, on a private flight to Ardmore, was turning after take-off from Queenstown when it entered a spin or spiral dive which led to a collision with the ground. The pilot and all five passengers were killed. The position of the Remarkables Range, in relation to runway 14, restricted the space available and precluded a normal visual horizon reference for the pilot during the turn.

On Thursday 2 January 1997, at approximately 1520 hours, the pilot was flying three hunters and a dog in ZK-HQA from Poronui to a hut in the Kaimanawa Ranges. Some five minutes after departure, while the helicopter was in a cruise-climb at about 3400 feet, the engine suddenly lost power. During the subsequent auto rotational landing two of the hunters were injured and the helicopter was substantially damaged. No conclusive reason was found to account for the unexpected loss of power.