ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 154118
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| Date: | Sunday 7 August 2005 |
| Time: | 18:00 LT |
| Type: |  Robinson R44 |
| Owner/operator: | Comav |
| Registration: | |
| MSN: | |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Near the Daan Viljoen Game Park on the outskirts of Windhoek -
 Namibia
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Eros Airport, Windhoek, Namibia (FYWE/ERS) |
| Hosea Kutako International Airport, Windhoek Nambia (WDH/FYWH) | |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources |
THE sole owner and shareholder of the Comav aviation company, Danie van der Merwe, died on Sunday afternoon when his Robinson R44 helicopter crashed on his farm near Windhoek.
He was flying from Windhoek to his farm Augeigas, which borders the Daan Viljoen Game Park outside Windhoek.
He took two passengers from Eros Airport to Hosea Kutako Airport and was on his way to his farm when he hit a power line at around 18:00 on Sunday.
The helicopter crashed and burst into flames, starting a veld fire that was still raging yesterday.
"He was a very experienced and safety-conscious pilot and something on the ground must have distracted him," remarked the Executive Director of Comav, Isaac Kaulinge. He also said that Van der Merwe had complained about poachers on his farm a couple of weeks ago and this might have been the reason why he took a different route to his farm this time.
The helicopter was one of two owned by Comav and was used by Radio Cosmos for morning traffic reports in Windhoek. A management committee was appointed yesterday and a staff meeting was held to assure staff and business partners of Comav that the business would continue as usual. By yesterday already it was business as usual, with all flights taking off as scheduled.
"Danie was a workaholic, always on the lookout for new challenges, and the best way we can honour his memory is by
continuing with the day-to-day operations of his business" saidKaulinge.
Sources:
1. https://www.namibian.com.na/index.php?id=10648&page=archive-read
2. https://www.pprune.org/archive/index.php/t-185059.html
3. http://www.republikein.com.na/conten...g/08_danie.php
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 15-Mar-2013 10:55 | gerard57 | Added |
| 15-Oct-2018 23:29 | Dr.John Smith | Updated [Time, Operator, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
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