ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 63105
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| Date: | Sunday 4 August 1963 |
| Time: | c. 1645 |
| Type: | Taylorcraft Auster 5 |
| Owner/operator: | A Whitfield |
| Registration: | ZK-AWU |
| MSN: | 1828 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 2 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Craigieburn Range, Canterbury -
 New Zealand
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Hororata |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information verified through data from accident investigation authorities |
The Auster was on a private sightseeing flight intended to encompass various areas of the Southern Alps including the head of the Broken River in the Craigieburn Range. The weather was sunny and calm with no cloud.
In the vicinity of Allans Basin the plane was seen to enter a narrow and deep ravine. It flew to the right hand side of the ravine and commenced a steep climbing turn in an apparent attempt to get out of the cul-de-sac.
In the course of this turn the nose dropped and the plane dived out of the sight of witnesses, but a couple of seconds later the sound of a crash was heard.
A rescue party, including a doctor, arrived at the scene of the crash in about 30 minutes and found the plane with its nose buried deep in a snow slope. It had impacted almost vertically and was wrecked. The pilot was seriously injured and the passenger, Kenneth George Howe Brownlee, of Bangor, Northern Ireland, was dead. He had died instantly from a severe head injury.
The investigators found no evidence of pre-crash defects in the engine or airframe. The fuel tank contained a residue of fuel and there was a strong odour of spilled petrol at the site. The plane had been refueled at Hororata only an hour before the crash.
The investigation concluded that the accident was caused by spatial disorientation in the absence of a natural horizon when in the course of a turn inside a narrow mountain ravine, and the aircraft had stalled and dived into the ground.
The accident investigators stated that a partial loss of engine power due to carburettor icing could not be completely ruled out.
The report noted that the pilot had the reputation of being a reliable and responsible pilot.
It further noted that there was no element of exhibitionism or " beating up " involved in the accident.
However, the investigators cited the pilot's breach of the civil air regulation relating to minimum safe heights.
Kenneth Brownlee (30) killed in a flying accident.
R.I.P.
Sources:
http://archway.archives.govt.nz/ViewEntity.do?code=7333
Civil Aircraft Accident Report No. 25/3/1343.
History of this aircraft
Other occurrences involving this aircraft
| 15 July 1956 | ZK-AWU | P J Eadie | Omoto, West Coast | |
sub |
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 22-May-2009 12:58 | XLerate | Added |
| 26-May-2011 23:02 | angels one five | Updated [Time, Cn, Operator, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Other fatalities, Location, Phase, Nature, Departure airport, Source, Damage, Narrative] |
| 21-Oct-2013 04:56 | angels one five | Updated [Time, Operator, Location, Departure airport, Narrative] |
| 04-Jul-2014 23:42 | angels one five | Updated [Aircraft type, Narrative] |
| 14-Dec-2014 11:52 | angels one five | Updated [Narrative] |
| 18-Feb-2016 07:08 | angels one five | Updated [Narrative] |
| 21-Nov-2016 10:49 | angels one five | Updated [Narrative] |
| 29-Dec-2021 05:56 | angels one five | Updated [Phase] |
| 24-Jan-2022 05:16 | Ron Averes | Updated [Aircraft type, Location] |
| 13-Feb-2022 05:34 | Ron Averes | Updated [Location] |
| 13-Feb-2022 05:43 | Ron Averes | Updated [[Location]] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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