Tycoon at fault in crash

The wreckage of Erceg's EC 120 Eurocopter near Raglan, above. Photo / Glenn Jeffrey

Liquor baron Michael Erceg has been found at fault for the helicopter crash that claimed his life - after family members fought the findings of the official report for two years.

The official inquiry by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) into the death of one of New Zealand's richest men is due to be completed with the release of its report later this month.

This month marks the fourth anniversary of the disappearance - and death - of Erceg, who went missing after departing Raglan in his helicopter with passenger Guus Klatte, a Dutch beer executive.

Erceg's estimated $620 million fortune at the time of his death swelled to $1.25 billion when his company, Independent Liquor, was sold following his death.

The search for Erceg's helicopter captured the nation's attention for a fortnight as wife Lynette and brother Ivan Erceg publicly declared their hope that the businessman was alive.

It was a search in vain - the Civil Aviation Authority called off the official search after four days and the family carried out its own. A document on the CAA website estimates the cost for the total search at $8m, including the $2.4m price tag for the official search.

The Herald on Sunday has learned that the draft report of the investigation finds Erceg contributed to the crash that caused his death by deciding to fly into bad weather with insufficient experience.

One of the authority's most respected investigators, engineer Tom McCready, spent about 18 months investigating the crash. Within CAA, there was emphasis placed on the need for the investigation to be faultless, because of the high feeling and resource of the Erceg family.

The investigation was so extensive it even involved sending the engine of Erceg's Eurocopter helicopter to its manufacturer in France to be stripped and examined for fault.

Detailed examination was also carried out of the radar plot of Erceg's flight, along with a study of weather patterns in the area and a range of other factors.

The weather was a factor in the crash, with two sources familiar with the investigation saying that data showed the helicopter struggling to make headway.

One source said it would have been like being placed in a bottle "and being shaken up and down".

"He was not an experienced pilot. He was certainly not experienced [enough] to be flying into cloud that he was ... forced to do."

Erceg gained his helicopter licence two years earlier. He took off, in good weather, from Ardmore Airfield in Auckland about 9.45am on November 4, 2005, heading south for Queenstown. He wanted to show visitor Klatte the stretch of New Zealand from the air, with planned fuel stops at Wanganui and Rangiora. His helicopter was last seen on radar at 10.15am after he landed at and took off from Raglan.

The weather around Mt Karioi had been building and "would not have been good" to fly into, the Herald on Sunday was told.

The report also raises the issue of a broken rescue beacon on Erceg's helicopter. The antenna on the beacon was found broken in the crash. More rugged systems that constantly plot movement have since been developed.

McCready compiled an initial report, which was distributed to Erceg's family and other parties associated with the accident.

The normal process involves those receiving draft reports to make comments, which are returned and considered by the CAA, with any changes then sent out again in an updated version.

But in the case of the Erceg report, there were extensive points raised by Ivan Erceg, who is currently living in Monaco. It resulted in long delays in completing and releasing the report.

CAA spokesman Bill Sommers said opinions had been sought on the draft findings. "There's been a lot of bouncing backwards and forwards. We try to make sure that when we conduct a safety investigation that people are consulted and kept aware of what's going on.

"This has taken quite some time and there has been a considerable amount of information flow both ways."

- HERALD ON SUNDAY