Date:	Sunday 3 July 2005
Time:	c. 17:25
Type:	Piper PA-31-350 Chieftain
Owner/operator:	RL Aviation
Registration:	VH-OAO
MSN:	31-8252021
Year of manufacture:	1982
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 3 / Occupants: 3
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Category:	Accident
Location:	Mount Hotham, Cobungra, VIC -   Australia
Phase:	Approach
Nature:	Passenger - Non-Scheduled/charter/Air Taxi
Departure airport:	Essendon Airport, Victoria (MEB/YMEN)
Destination airport:	Mount Hotham, Victoria (MHU/YHOT)
Investigating agency:	ATSB
Confidence Rating:	Accident investigation report completed and information captured

Narrative:
On 8 July 2005, the pilot was conducting a charter flight, with two passengers on board, in a Piper PA-31-350 Navajo Chieftain. The flight was initially planned to proceed from Essendon Airport to Mount Hotham, Victoria. However, because of adverse weather, the pilot revised his destination to Wangaratta. While en route, he diverted the aircraft to his originally intended destination, Mount Hotham. The pilot subsequently reported to air traffic control that he was overhead Mount Hotham. He changed the flight category from visual flight rules to instrument flight rules and advised his intention to conduct an instrument approach to runway 29.

At about 17:25, the pilot told the Mount Hotham Airport Manager by radio that he was on final approach for runway 29 and asked him to switch on the runway lights. After doing so, the manager attempted to tell the pilot that the lights had been switched on, but received no response. Subsequent attempts by air traffic control and the crews of other aircraft to contact the pilot were also unsuccessful.

Because of hazardous weather conditions over the following two days, the search for the aircraft was primarily conducted on foot and horseback. The aircraft was located on a tree covered ridge, partially covered by snow. It had flown into trees in a level attitude, slightly banked to the right. Initial impact with the ridge was at about 200 ft below the elevation of the Mount Hotham aerodrome.

The Chieftain had broken into several large sections and an intense fire had consumed most of the cabin. The occupants were fatally injured. Among them was the Gold Coast multi-millionaire Brian Ray and his wife. The investigation determined that the aircraft systems had been operating normally. The weather conditions were ideal for a "flat light" phenomenon that was likely to have denied the pilot adequate visual reference. The pilot may have experienced disorientation and loss of situational awareness. The aircraft was not equipped for flight in icing conditions, nor had the pilot complied with the requirements for flight under the instrument flight rules or in accord with the visual flight rules.

1. ATSB Occurrence Nr. 200503265 at http://atsb.gov.au/publications/investigation_reports/2005/AAIR/pdf/aair200503265_001.pdf
2. NTSB Identification: LAX05WA228 at https://www.ntsb.gov/investigations/_layouts/ntsb.aviation/brief2.aspx?ev_id=20050715X01032&ntsbno=LAX05WA228&akey=1
3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Hotham_Airport#Incidents_and_accidents
4. [LINK NOT WORKING ANYMORE:http://www.baaa-acro.com/2005/archives/crash-of-a-piper-pa-31-navajo-chieftain-in-mount-hotham-3-killed/]

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
21-Jan-2008 10:00	ASN archive	Added
19-Jan-2009 11:07	harro	Updated
28-Jul-2009 10:22	Anon.	Updated
01-Jul-2015 00:52	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Operator, Location, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative]
04-Jul-2015 00:43	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Destination airport, Source]
19-Oct-2017 18:28	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Source, Narrative]
10-Jun-2022 04:15	Ron Averes	Updated [Location]