Examination of the wreckage disclosed no evidence of any defect or malfunction which may have contributed to the accident. The aircraft had struck a densely timbered slope whilst turning away from rising ground and it had come to rest in an upright attitude. The machinery wheel from the luggage compartment had broken free on impact and had struck the occupants of the front seats.

The tug struck and deflected the towbar and then collided with the aircrafts nosewheel structure, pushing it backward. The nose section of the aircraft crushed the tug cabin, killing the driver.

As the Twin Comanche aircraft approached a heading consistent with a crosswind leg of the traffic pattern the pilot in command and two of the passengers sighted the Cessna aircraft very close on their starboard side. The pilot in command took immediate action in an attempt to avoid the Cessna but, before this action became effective, the starboard propeller of the Twin Comanche passed through the elevator, tailcone, rudder and lower rear fuselage of that aircraft. The Twin Comanche passed beneath the Cessna, crossing from left to right. At 1326:50 hours EST the pilot in command of the Twin Comanche notified Bankstown Tower that his aircraft had collided with another aircraft.

While the aircraft was banked about 45 degrees to the right it struck a tree at a height of 42 feet and, following impact with other trees, it struck the ground in an inverted attitude and a fierce fire broke out.

On 23 October 1975 Hawker Siddeley Heron DH114 2E/A1 aircraft, registered VHCLS, with a crew of three and eight passengers aboard, departed Mount Isa, Queensland, for Cairns on a regular public transport service. The flight proceeded to the vicinity of Cairns without reported incident and at 1917 hours Eastern Standard Time (EST) it was cleared for, and acknowledged instructions for an ILS (instrument landing system) approach to Runway 15 at Cairns Airport. At 1926 hours the flight reported 'going round' and, at about this time a number of people located at various positions to the north of the airport observed an aircraft manoeuvring at a low height. Shortly afterwards the aircraft crashed at a point 2813 metres north-west of the threshold of Runway 15. Heavy rain and lightning were in the general area of the accident site. The aircraft was virtually destroyed, and all of its occupants were killed as a result of the accident.

 

 

The port wing tip contacted the ground and the aircraft crashed in an inverted attitude.

The aircraft undershot, struck a tree short of the intended landing area and, with the starboard wing torn off by tree impact it swung through 180 degrees and crashed to the ground in a flat attitude some 12 metres beyond the tree. As the pilot assisted the passengers to vacate the aircraft a fire, which was initially apparent in the area of the starboard wing root, developed rapidly.

See attached file to the right.

On 2 April, 1975 a Cessna 172K aircraft, registered VH-RGU, disappeared while on a flight from Welpa to Aurukun Mission, Queensland. The pilot, was the only person on board the aircraft. No trace of the aircraft has been found; however on 12 April, 1975 the body of the pilot was found on a tidal flat in Archer Bay, five kilometres west of Aurukun Mission.

At 1400 hours WST on 14 October, 1974 Boeing 727/76 aircraft registered VH-TJB, encountered severe turbulence during cruise at flight level 350 near Caiguna, Western Australia. Two of the fifty-one passengers were seriously injured, eighteen passengers and two flight hostesses sustained minor injury and there was damage to cabin fittings and furnishings.