Case 2: Private flight, January 3, 1997

Dead: five passengers and pilot

The Cessna 310Q was on a private flight taking young Aucklanders to Ardmore and was turning after take-off from Queenstown when it went into a spin and crashed to the ground near the Remarkables mountain range.

The TAIC report says inadvertent mishandling of the aircraft by the pilot probably resulted from his inexperience and lack of mountain flying skills.

The CAA was issued with recommendations, including that mountain flying training be included in the training syllabus for private pilot and commercial pilot licences.

Coroner Trevor Savage also found pilot error and lack of experience and made recommendations to the CAA, but the CAA failed to act.

Savage is quoted in the Southland Times as saying: "In respect of the decision not to require mountainous terrain flight training as a part of the syllabus, I am certainly disappointed and not persuaded by the Civil Aviation Authority's reasoning, but as I say, they are the statutory body to make the decision."