Inquiries & Recommendations

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On 27 November 2006, about 8 minutes after departing Wellington airport on a scheduled flight to Kaikoura with one passenger, the pilot of a Gippsland Aeronautics GA8 aircraft, registered ZK-KLC, felt the engine misfire and saw that the oil pressure had reduced. The pilot immediately returned to Wellington and made a safe landing. The engine had major internal damage, which the evidence indicated had started with the failure of an exhaust valve tappet. The cause of the tappet failure was not determined.

On Thursday 14 December 2000, at 1804, Piper PA23-250D Aztec ZK-DIR landed at Gisborne Aerodrome. Shortly after landing its nose undercarriage leg collapsed aft. The pilot and 4 passengers on board the aircraft were uninjured. Nothing conclusive was found showing why the undercarriage leg collapsed. Three scenarios are discussed as possible causes. The more likely possible cause was that play in the drag strut bushes somehow contributed to a mechanical down lock malfunction, but this could not be replicated during testing. No safety issues were identified.

At about 1330 on 21 June 2007, the specialised bulk iron sand carrier Taharoa Express left its single buoy mooring in Port Taharoa to seek refuge in Tasman Bay from forecast severe weather. The ship had been scheduled to have a slurry of about 116 000 dry tonnes of iron sand mixed with water pumped aboard. Earlier during the loading process the ship’s duct keel had flooded with water from the slurry-loading process, disabling the ship's ballast and cargo de-watering systems.

[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.]

Passenger train parts at low speed, inspection and response gaps exposed. A cracked coupler, unnoticed in maintenance, caused carriages on the TranzAlpine tourist train to part. Power braking stress, missed alarms, and no procedure for crew to deal with partings revealed wider risks.

A refuse collection truck entered a level crossing, very likely without stopping at the Stop sign, and was struck by a log train. The truck driver died in the accident. Even if the truck had stopped, the view lines weren’t good enough for the truck to clear the crossing if a train had been just out of view. Legislation is unclear on allocation of responsibility for safety of crossing users. Road users must be cautious. Wearing seatbelts will increase the chances of survival.

On Sunday 27 July 2003 at about 0450, the motor tanker "Eastern Honor" grounded while entering Whangarei Harbour to berth at Marsden Point Oil terminal. The hull in the area of the bow, stern and rudder was damaged. The "Eastern Honor" subsequently berthed safely at the oil terminal where the cargo was discharged. There were no injuries and no discharge of oil into the environment. This grounding occurred about 3½ months after a similar incident involving the "Capella Voyager" (TAIC Marine Occurrence Report 03-206).

On Wednesday, 24 February 1999 at about 0640, the passenger and freight ferry "Aratere", with 221 passengers and 33 crew on board, was proceeding past Point Halswell in Wellington Harbour at the beginning of a scheduled service to Picton, when the vessel suffered a series of power failures that eventually left it adrift without power. The emergency generator that was designed to supply power to essential services also failed.

The Transport Accident Investigation Commission assisted an Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) investigation into an aviation safety incident in Australia. The ATSB reported that during the cruise phase of a Boeing 737’s freight flight from Perth to Christmas Island, the crew detected altitude and airspeed disagreements and returned to safely land at Perth. Post-flight inspection found melted plastic on the pitot tubes. The tubes supply pitot pressure to a range of flight instruments and are often protected by a cover when an aircraft is parked. New Zealand has completed its support for this inquiry.

[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.]

At the normal lift-off point, the pilot heard a 'bang' and felt the aircraft wobble. On checking the ski positions he saw that the left ski was hanging about 40ø out of alignment and it was evident that the undercarriage leg had fractured, the wheel/ski assembly being retained largely by the front and rear cable/bungee installation.