ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 217536
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| Date: | Wednesday 20 May 1970 |
| Time: | c. 08:40 |
| Type: |  Piper PA-23-250 Aztec C |
| Owner/operator: | STOL Commuters |
| Registration: | VH-COB |
| MSN: | 27-2627 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 9 / Occupants: 9 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Gurney, Milne Bay -
 Papua New Guinea
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Passenger - Non-Scheduled/charter/Air Taxi |
| Departure airport: | Gurney (AYGN) |
| Esa'ala | |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources |
Soon after departing from Gurney in eastern Papua, on a charter flight to Esa'ala on Normanby Island, the Piper Aztec failed to out-climb a saddle in a mountain ridge that lay across its path and crashed on the mountain slopes in dense jungle 4 miles north of the airport. The pilot, Richard Ian Cornett (35) and the eight passengers on board were killed and the aircraft was destroyed. The probable cause of the accident was that the pilot, who was inexperienced in the operational circumstances which pertained, did not make a timely decision to turn away from rising terrain when it should have been apparent that the aircraft could not clear it. Relevant factors were:
1) The pilot had not been adequately trained on the route,
2) There were insufficient seat-belts for the number of passengers carried,
3) The aircraft was overloaded by approximately 126 kg,
4) The engines were in "very poor condition" and the starboard engine had a history of failing and being difficult to start.
Sources:
1. Canberra Times, 21 May 1970, page 3,
2. PNG Post-Courier, 1 June 1970, page 1: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article250228051
3. Canberra Times, 8 December 1970, page 13,
4. Aviation Safety Digest Nov. 1970
5. Janic Geelen, NZ.
Images:
Photo: BASI
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 10-Nov-2018 15:43 | harro | Added |
| 04-Dec-2021 02:09 | Ron Averes | Updated [Aircraft type, Registration, Cn, Operator, Source] |
| 13-Jun-2022 19:22 | Turbulator | Updated [Operator, Location, Nature, Departure airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 26-Jun-2023 16:35 | Ron Averes | Updated [[Operator, Location, Nature, Departure airport, Source, Narrative]] |
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