Date:	Sunday 14 August 2016
Time:	15:30
Type:	Druine D.31 Turbulent
Owner/operator:	The Tiger Club (1990) Ltd
Registration:	G-ARNZ
MSN:	PFA 579
Year of manufacture:	1961
Engine model:	Volkswagen 1600
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1
Aircraft damage:	Substantial
Category:	Accident
Location:	Sea, In the Inter-Tidal Zone, off Herne Bay, Kent, England -   United Kingdom
Phase:	Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.)
Nature:	Demo/Airshow/Display
Departure airport:	Maypole Airport (EGHB)
Destination airport:	Maypole Airport (EGHB)
Investigating agency:	AAIB
Confidence Rating:	Accident investigation report completed and information captured

Narrative:
A Druine D.31 Turbulent ditched in the sea during the Herne Bay Air Show on 14 August 2016. The aircraft came down close to the shore and nosed over. The pilot survived, having been assisted from the wreckage by members of the public and appears to have received only minor injuries. The aircraft was quickly brought ashore.

UPDATE: The official AAIB report into the accident was published on August 10, 2017, and the following is an extract from that report...

"Engine ingested balloon fragment causing loss of power, ditched by beach, Herne Bay, Kent, 14 August 2016.

During the ‘balloon bursting’ element of a flying display on the coast, the engine lost power and the pilot ditched the aircraft in shallow water. The aircraft flipped inverted and the pilot was trapped in the cockpit by his life jacket, which had inflated automatically, and his proximity to the sea bed. Two members of the public righted the aircraft and helped the pilot out of the cockpit. The pilot had suffered a minor injury. CAA Safety Sense Leaflet 21d, ‘Ditching’, provides advice on the correct type of life jacket to wear and guidance and information on ditching."

The investigation revealed that a fragment of balloon had become lodged in the carburettor restricting the airflow into the engine. An approved modification has since been developed to fit a screen to the intake of the carburettor."

Damage sustained to airframe: Per the AAIB report "Damage to the wing and [damage] from salt water immersion"

Herne Bay is a seaside town on the north coast of Kent in South East England. It is 6 miles (10 km) north of Canterbury and 4 miles (6 km) east of Whitstable. The "inter tidal zone" referred to is the area of the beach at Herne Bay between the high tide and low tide. At the time of G-ARNZ's accident, the sea was at high tide. hence the incident being classed as a ditching into the sea

1. AAIB: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/595e3e43ed915d0baf000121/Druine_D.31_Turbulent_G-ARNZ_08-17.pdf
2. CAA: https://siteapps.caa.co.uk/g-info/
3. https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/herne-bay-air-show-crash-8630007?1=
4. https://hmcoastguard.blogspot.co.uk/2016/08/coastguard-called-after-plane-ditches.html
5. http://www.kentonline.co.uk/herne-bay/news/plane-ditches-into-sea-in-100738/
6. http://www.kentonline.co.uk/herne-bay/news/was-balloon-to-blame-for-101431/
7. https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/video/2016/aug/15/plane-crashes-into-sea-off-kent-coast-during-airshow-video
8. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/08/14/herne-bay-airshow-crash-quick-witted-spectators-dash-into-sea-to/_/
9. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-37081840/plane-crashes-into-sea-at-air-show
10. https://cwsprduksumbraco.blob.core.windows.net/g-info/HistoricalLedger/G-ARNZ-1.pdf
11. https://cwsprduksumbraco.blob.core.windows.net/g-info/HistoricalLedger/G-ARNZ-2.pdf
12. https://cwsprduksumbraco.blob.core.windows.net/g-info/HistoricalLedger/G-ARNZ-3.pdf
13. https://www.planelogger.com/Aircraft/Registration/G-ARNZ/858512
14. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herne_Bay

Druine D.31 Turbulent G-ARNZ was built in 1960-61, and first registered as such on 26 June 1961. Between 26 June 1961 and 13 July 2021, it passed through the hands of 13 successive owners. On 13 July 2021, the registration was cancelled (and the airframe de-registered) by the CAA as \"withdrawn from use\". G-ARNZ had been stored for several years before July 2021 (possibly not returned to flight after the above incident)

HERNE BAY update: The moment the plane crashed and overturned as it hit the sea this afternoon. Minor injuries only. pic.twitter.com/Fs25oiJrib

— Kent 999s (@Kent_999s) 14 août 2016

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
14-Aug-2016 15:25	harro	Added
14-Aug-2016 15:34	Aerossurance	Updated [Embed code]
14-Aug-2016 15:54	Aerossurance	Updated [Source, Embed code, Narrative]
14-Aug-2016 16:42	Aerossurance	Updated [Source, Narrative]
14-Aug-2016 16:43	Aerossurance	Updated [Time, Damage]
14-Aug-2016 17:06	Iceman 29	Updated [Embed code]
16-Aug-2016 09:46	Iceman 29	Updated [Embed code]
30-Apr-2017 23:56	Dr.John Smith	Updated [Operator, Source]
30-Apr-2017 23:57	Dr.John Smith	Updated [Source]
10-Aug-2017 17:02	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Location, Departure airport, Source, Narrative]
26-Jun-2023 09:31	Nepa	Updated [[Location, Departure airport, Source, Narrative]]
05-Apr-2024 05:56	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Destination airport, Source, Embed code, Narrative, Category]
05-Apr-2024 05:56	ASN	Updated [[Destination airport, Source, Embed code, Narrative, Category]]