The pilot had taken part in a flour bombing and balloon bursting competition and was returning to land. The front seat passenger was a flying instructor and was acting as a safety pilot and judge for the competition. The approach to land was high and the pilot decided to go around, however, the safety pilot suggested that sufficient strip remained for completion of the landing. The aircraft touched down about 600 metres beyond the runway threshold and bounced. The pilot applied some power and continued with the landing attempt, but the stall warning sounded and the airspeed was noted to be below 40 knots. The front seat passenger retracted flap to the take-off setting and instructed the pilot to apply full power and to lower the nose of the aircraft. He then placed his hands on the controls to monitor the pilot's control inputs. The aircraft failed to accelerate as it flew along the strip about a metre above the ground. It subsequently struck the airfield boundary fence before coming to rest 160 metres beyond.

The pilot was undertaking a solo navigation exercise prior to a flight test for the removal of area restrictions on his licence. About 20 minutes after DEPARTURE the engine commenced to run roughly, and the pilot diverted towards a suitable aerodrome. However, the engine performance deteriorated and the pilot elected to carry out a precautionary landing in a paddock. Towards the end of the landing roll the aircraft collided with a fence. Initial investigation revealed a broken rocker arm on one of the engine cylinders.

The glider was being launched via an aero-tow. It became airborne after a short ground run and climbed to a higher than normal altitude. The pilot attempted to correct the situation but the glider bounced twice on the strip, breaking off the tail skid. As the glider climbed away it continued to oscillate in a position above the tug aircraft. The tow rope was released when the glider was about 120 feet above ground level and the pilot, believing that there was insufficient runway remaining to land, attempted to turn back for a landing on the strip. During the turn the glider entered a spin subsequently striking the ground in a nose low attitude. The pilot was inexperienced on the aircraft type, having not flown the type for about two months. On the day there was a gusty wind blowing and it was the opinion of experienced local pilots that a landing straight ahead after rope release would have been possible.

When the pilot selected the gear up after take-off, the retraction cycle took longer than normal. The gear was selected down prior to the next landing and although the gear up light extinguished the gear motor did not operate and the gear down light did not illuminate. Attempts to lower the gear using the manual system were unsuccessful and the aircraft was diverted to a more suitable airfield. During the subsequent landing roll the main gear, which was only partially extended, collapsed. Although the pilot was experienced on the aircraft type and carried out a trouble check of the gear system, he did not reset the hydraulic pump circuit breaker, which had tripped. The circuit breaker had probably tripped during the retraction cycle after the previous take-off. The reason the manual extension did not operate could not be determined.

The pilot was requested, by the passenger, to land the helicopter on the mud flats to the north of Kununurra. He decided to make a run on landing as he believed he may have difficulty in hovering the helicopter. As the aircraft approached the touchdown point, the pilot allowed it to yaw into wind, but it contacted the ground still moving sideways. The left skid caught in the dry mud and the helicopter rolled onto its side. The pilot was inexperienced in the operation of helicopters and had experienced difficulty in hovering the aircraft when he departed Kununurra that morning. The approach to land on the mud flat was poorly planned and the pilot misjudged the altitude of the aircraft during the turn into wind.

The flight had been arranged to take passengers and freight from Pulparee, a seismic exploration field camp, to Brisbane. Just after the aircraft became airborne the right wing struck two men who were working on the top of the cabin of a truck. A section of the right wing was torn from the aircraft, however, the pilot was able to land the aircraft at Pulparee without further incident. The truck was located approximately 24 metres to the right of the centreline of the strip. From the point where the take-off was commenced the strip met the criteria for an authorised landing area. The vehicle was struck 1110 metres from the start of the take-off roll and about 200 metres after the aircraft became airborne. At the time the surface wind was gusting from the left and there were dust devils in the area. Shortly after becoming airborne, the pilot felt that the aircraft was not performing normally, and he looked into the cockpit to check the instruments. During this time, the aircraft diverged from the strip direction and the right wing dropped. The pilot heard the impact as the men were struck, and then looked out to see that the right wingtip had been severed. No evidence was obtained to indicate that the aircraft was not capable of normal operation. The pilot had been working in direct sunlight in temperatures of about 40 degrees Celsius for four hours prior to the flight. It was therefore likely that he experienced some degree of heat stress. One of the effects of heat stress is that the time taken to integrate information is increased. It is considered probable that when the pilot looked at his instruments he required longer than normal to assimilate the information presented by the instruments. It was during this period that the aircraft was affected by the crosswind and possibly a dust devil and drifted off the intended flight path while travelling the distance to the truck. It was also probable that the correct climb attitude was not maintained.

As the aircraft was being taxied for take-off, the nosewheel struck a small termite mound. The nosegear was broken off and the aircraft came to rest on the lower engine cowl. The strip was normally slashed every two weeks, a process which cut the grass and removed termite mounds. Because of recent dry weather which had inhibited grass growth, slashing had not been done for 4-5 weeks, and small termite mounds had built up. Several of these mounds were not noticed during the pre-flight strip inspection. The low colour contrast between the mounds and the strip surface, and the sun angle at the time, made the mounds difficult to see.

As the four parachutists were preparing to jump from the aircraft, the reserve parachute, of the parachutist who was standing on the wing strut of the aircraft, deployed. The reserve parachute was ejected forward over the leading edge of the wing causing the parachutist to be dragged over the wing before falling from the aircraft. This resulted in injury to the parachutist and the buckling of the inboard section of the leading edge of the wing. During the subsequent descent the parachutist activated the main parachute which failed to fully deploy. In an effort to reduce his high rate of descent he steered towards a large tree, contacting the branches before falling to the ground. Sections of the reserve parachute were lost during the descent and it was not possible to determine the reason for inadvertent deployment of the reserve parachute. The main parachute did not fully deploy because one of the steering toggles and some suspension lines became tangled with the streaming reserve parachute lines.

After the aircraft had been airborne about 90 minutes, the engine began to run roughly. The pilot's attempts to restore full power were unsuccessful and the engine stopped. During the latter stages of the subsequent landing roll, the aircraft struck a dead tree and damage was caused to the left wing and lower engine cowl. Before commencing the flight the pilot had checked the fuel contents gauges, they indicated that both tanks were about half full. He did not, however, visually check the fuel quantity in each tank nor did he specifically plan the duration of the flight. The loss of engine power was caused by fuel exhaustion.

On arrival in the circuit area at Streaky Bay the pilot selected the gear down and obtained an instrument indication that the gear was locked down. While the aircraft was on final approach it encountered turbulence and the gear warning horn sounded, the gear unlocked indicator light illuminated and the nosegear down light extinguished. The pilot initiated a go-around and after unsuccessful attempts to obtain a gear locked down indication, diverted the aircraft to Parafield. On landing at Parafield the nosegear collapsed. Inspection of the nosegear revealed that the bolt which secures the nosegear retraction linkage to the drag brace had failed in the thread area due to fatigue. It is evident that the bolt failed and partially withdrew in the circuit area at Streaky Bay, giving rise to the unsafe gear condition.