CAA investigators at the scene of a fatal light aircraft crash on the Ngaruroro River, in March, 2014. Photo / File
CAA investigators at the scene of a fatal light aircraft crash on the Ngaruroro River, in March, 2014. Photo / File
A new report has revealed that the two pilots killed in a plane crash near Hastings nearly four years ago had potentially fatal heart conditions and were at risk of sudden death.
Christopher Rawlings, 48, of Clive, and Christopher Howell, 46, of the United Kingdom, were killed when their Piper Tomahawk aircraft crashed in the Ngaruroro River at 11.06am on March 23, 2014.
A Civil Aviation Authority report found the aircraft crashed because it departed from controlled flight, most likely when the aircraft's critical angle of attack was exceeded, resulting in an aerodynamic stall and spin.
Although an investigation was unable to conclusively determine why the aircraft departed from controlled flight, the two "most likely" scenarios involved a pilot handling error, or the incapacitation of one of the pilots.
The plane took off from Hastings Aerodrome at 10.29am and was last seen 1.5 nautical miles from the crash site just minutes before it crashed.
The witness saw the aircraft "at just above the height of nearby trees".
The report found the US-built aircraft was airworthy and had undergone a scheduled maintenance 11 days before the crash. There was no evidence of any mechanical or flight control system failure that might have contributed to the accident.
Weather on the day was described as cloudy with no wind, no sun and good visibility.
Rawlings was a flying instructor with 552 hours of flying time, 367 hours of which were in a PA 38 112 aircraft.
However, a review of the instructor pilot's logbook identified several gaps in the instructor's training, which appeared to be "non-standard".
The site of the crash on the Ngaruroro River. Photo/File
Howell was a former Royal Air Force military pilot and at the time of the accident was a corporate jet captain in Europe.
He was not used to flying light aircraft and had carried out a practice flight two days earlier with the intention of taking a test to gain a commercial New Zealand pilot's licence.
Although a UK CAA file showed he had undergone extensive medical investigations into an abnormal heartbeat, an ECG undertaken in New Zealand did not reveal any issues.
However, a report produced by the forensic pathologist after the accident said he had sarcoidal myocarditis - an inflammation of the heart muscle that can result in sudden death. Despite that, an autopsy was "unable to prove or exclude" a cardiac event had caused a collapse.
Similarly, the forensic pathologist said that Rawlings had coronary heart disease that could be associated with sudden death.
"Given the inconclusive medical analysis, the possibility of pilot incapacitation cannot be excluded as a contributing factor in this incident," the report said.
The report said that if either pilot had become incapacitated it would have been difficult for the other pilot to have taken control, given the plane was likely to have been flying at low level.
There was no way to establish which pilot had been in control at the time of the accident.
After the investigation, CAA issued four safety observations to raise awareness of the potential for an "inverse trans-cockpit authority gradient".
The first observations were to focus attention on the supervision of instructors to ensure skills were maintained, and to educate and evaluate a training organisation's ability to provide and monitor the consistency and continuity of flight instruction and training.
A further safety observation raised with the Hawke's Bay East Coast Aero Club and its associated Flight Academy business, suggesting that the need for all training for experienced foreign pilot licence holders be conducted by the Flight Academy, had already been addressed by the aero club before the report's release.
Aero Club president Bruce Sutherland said the club supported the report's findings.
