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Post by stu on Apr 26, 2008 17:12:13 GMT 12
According to our newsroom, there has been a light aircraft crash at Whenuapai.
I have no details other than "it missed the houses" and it is now the lead story at 6.
Cheers,
Stu.
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Post by vgp on Apr 26, 2008 17:18:53 GMT 12
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Post by stu on Apr 26, 2008 17:22:57 GMT 12
Missed that on the website ... must have been updating when I looked. Same story on the news wires though. Very sad news  |
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Post by vgp on Apr 26, 2008 17:25:34 GMT 12
NOT Wrong as above - sneaky bu??ers re: website
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Post by Dave Homewood on Apr 26, 2008 17:51:29 GMT 12
This is dreadful news. My sincere condolences to the families of those killed, and their friends, and to the folk at Whenuapai. I really hope Peter Lewis wasn't flying today. More from TVNZ's site: tvnz.co.nz/view/page/413551/1746293Plane crashes at Whenuapai Airport Apr 26, 2008 5:42 PM Two people are dead after their light plane crashed into the ground at Whenuapai airport near Auckland late on Saturday afternoon. Ambulance services say the two died on impact. Phil O'Kell, an eyewitness, looked on in horror as the plane plummeted to the ground. He says the plane appeared to stall before it crashed. The two who died were the only people in the plane, and no one on the ground was killed or injured. |
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Post by Dave Homewood on Apr 26, 2008 19:06:58 GMT 12
www.stuff.co.nz/4498114a10.htmlTwo die in light plane crash at Whenuapai Saturday, 26 April 2008 Two people died in a light plane crash at the Royal New Zealand Air Force base at Whenuapai on Saturday. Eyewitnesses said the aircraft nose-dived and ploughed into the ground. The base is used by aero clubs. Inspector Turepu Keenan said both occupants of the Cessna aircraft were killed. The aircraft crashed at the end of the runway shortly after 4.30pm. "It is not into a hangar. No one on the ground was injured in the accident and civil aviation will be investigating it," Lisa D'Oliveira, a spokesman for the base, said. A man watching aircraft land with his son, who wants to be a pilot, watched the tragedy unfold. "It seemed to fly over the air base, it did a very sharp right-hand turn and got into a stall situation," he said on TV3. "Then it just headed straight for the ground. "I looked and I thought `gee, that's not going to pull out of that in a hurry'. "It carried straight down and hit the ground on quite an angle. "There was a big plume of smoke followed by a very large flash." -NZPA
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Post by beagle on Apr 26, 2008 20:35:37 GMT 12
so we can confirm it went into the ground and not a hangar or other building then..
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Post by Dave Homewood on Apr 26, 2008 22:51:17 GMT 12
tvnz.co.nz/view/page/411365/1746293Plane crashes at Whenuapai Airport Apr 26, 2008 8:50 PM Two people are dead after their light plane crashed into the ground at Whenuapai airport near Auckland late on Saturday afternoon. The Thorp T-18 crashed at 4.30pm on Saturday afternoon and ambulance, fire and other emergency services rushed to the scene, some coming all the way from the West Auckland area. Just after the crash, residents say they heard loud banging noises. Ambulance services say the two people in the plane died on impact. Just outside the airport, the O'Kell family watched in horror as the plane descended. Phil O'Kell, one of the eyewitnesses, said it looked like the plane was going to come into land, but then stalled, and performed a sharp right hand turn before crashing. He says the plane nose dived and crashed into the other side of the Whenuapai airbase right into a large hangar. The Civil Aviation Authority will be on the scene on Sunday morning to investigate and the scene of the crash has already been set up for their arrival. It says the plane was a high-performance aircraft with an excellent safety record. The two who died were the only people in the plane, and no one on the ground was killed or injured. Police say next of kin of the two people who died in the crash have yet to be notified. Source: Newstalk ZB/ONE News
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Post by Dave Homewood on Apr 26, 2008 23:02:53 GMT 12
So, not a Cessna, and it seems not a hangar.
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Post by stu on Apr 26, 2008 23:08:52 GMT 12
Without wanting to sound too critical in such unfortunate circumstances but it seems to be the usual media scrum with various "facts" emerging ... it's a Cessna/Thorp T-18 that did/didn't crash into a Hangar when it hit the ground.
I'm sure the correct facts will come out soon enough but in the meantime, I'd like to offer my condolences to the friends and families of those involved with this tragic event.
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Post by Bruce on Apr 27, 2008 8:33:36 GMT 12
It is with deep sadness this morning that I read the Victims were Wayne Matthews and Brent Baldwin. Wayne recently set an unofficial non - stop around NZ record and was working on even longer range adventures. He was a stalwart of the Auckland chapter of SAA and had a reudation for meticulous attention to detail and quality workmanship. I knew Wayne from previous fly - ins around the country, but got to know him quite well when setting up the SAA hangar at SportAvex. He was very enthusiastic about promoting sport flying, and was a great charcter. He acheived many epic flights, but he never told anyone about them until after he had done them. He will be sadly missed and there will be a Thorp shaped hole in NZ sport flying for years to come. RIP wayne and Brent |
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Post by flyjoe180 on Apr 27, 2008 9:24:47 GMT 12
I didn't even hear about this yesterday. Condolences to the families and friends of the deceased.
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Post by flyjoe180 on Apr 27, 2008 9:27:15 GMT 12
The Herald article here had this at the end of the main article:
PREVIOUS CRASHES INVOLVING WHENUAPAI
July 3, 1963: National Airways Corporation DC3, ZK-AYZ crashed in the Kaimai Ranges, killing all 23 people on board, en route to Tauranga from Whenuapai.
1989: A Convair freight plane went down into the Manukau Harbour off the end of the Whenuapai runway.
July 28, 2005: Firefighters and ambulances turned out in numbers to the Air Force's Whenuapai base after an engine compressor stalled on a Boeing 757 about 600m above North Shore City. The 12-year-old Boeing flew out to sea to burn off excess fuel, before landing safely back at Whenuapai.
Nov 4, 2006: Five parachutists bailed out of a smoking plane 3000ft over Auckland when their Cessna's engine failed after taking off from Whenuapai. Pilot Marc Saad flipped on a power line and landed upside down in a Kumeu vineyard but escaped with minor injuries.
The Convair accident into the Manukau Harbour was from Auckland (Mangere) Airport and not Whenuapai as stated.
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Post by vgp on Apr 27, 2008 10:10:30 GMT 12
while not an Aircraft their was also the PTSU instructor back in the late 80/early90s - Parachute did not open on a HALO drop .
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Post by Dave Homewood on Apr 27, 2008 10:33:41 GMT 12
My condolences to you Bruce and all others who knew these two men.
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Post by vgp on Apr 27, 2008 11:47:28 GMT 12
like wise - should read further up the page in future.
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Post by Dave Homewood on Apr 27, 2008 12:05:17 GMT 12
The Herald article here had this at the end of the main article: PREVIOUS CRASHES INVOLVING WHENUAPAI
They missed the TEAL Electra, the Liberator, the B-17, the Hudson that hit the hangar, the Hudson that slewed off the runway and crossed Brigham Creek Road, the Vincent that Geoff Roberts flew into telephone lines on take off, and no doubt many more accidents and incidents there. |
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Post by sniff on Apr 27, 2008 16:08:16 GMT 12
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Post by sniff on Apr 27, 2008 16:14:35 GMT 12
And Dave, dont forget the Herald Island DC-3. You could still see the wing spar at low tide in the mudflats between the Greenhithe causeway and HI in the mid-1990's. It was landing on 26, and, if I remember correctly, both engines were feathered on what should have been a practice single engine, night approach! Air traffic were oblivious to the loss, it was residents on HI alerted the base when they heard the pilot berating the co-pilot whilst sitting on the wing of the floundered Dak!  I think this was it, but I contest the last sentence, parts remained in the tide. NZ3549. Crashed into sea off Hobsonville on 16 November 1951 after suffering engine failure while practising single engine approaches. Written off books Whenuapai 15 January 1951, stripped and sold by tender number 4979 (20/04/1953). |
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Post by Peter Lewis on Apr 27, 2008 16:48:26 GMT 12
I really hope Peter Lewis wasn't flying today. No. I was away for the weekend at Whangarei Heads. The first I knew of the crash was my mother ringing me at 5.30pm when it was still breaking news. Lacking the ability to get an internet connection from there, I did managed to catch the 6pm TV news to try and get more information but at that time they knew no more. By 10pm the radio news bulletins had identified the aircraft as a Thorp, so I knew it was likely to be either Wayne or Kevin Foster (who also has Thorp ZK-EDF based at Whenuapai). Needless to say, I had quite a sleepless night until the 8am news today named Wayne and Brent Baldwin as the victims. Rather took the gloss off the weekend break. Although I never flew with Wayne, I knew him quite well at Whenuapai. We differed in our opinions on a number of things, but that's life. Earlier this year I spent a day working with him installing bird-proof netting in the rafters of the GA hangar. Last weekend we did a club trip to Raglan, where I took this photograph of 'Rosie 3'  After the meet up there, we walked through to Raglan township and had lunch in the garden bar of the pub. We sat with Wayne and his wife Jan, and they talked about their upcoming month-long trip to the USA and England to catch up with family. After that holiday, Wayne was planning to organise a light-aircraft group trip across the Tasman to Queensland, and was sounding out those who wished to go.  Sitting on the rear seat, facing the camera, R to L - Jan Matthews, Wayne and my partner Meredith at lunch in Raglan. Strange now to think that was only seven days ago. I don't think it's really hit home to me yet. |
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