Canberra: Fatal light aircraft crashes claimed 27 lives in 20 unnecessary accidents last year in Australia after two consecutive years of recording 33 deaths, according to the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB).
Despite the decrease in the number of fatalities, the spate of fatal crashes in 2024 caused concern about the future of the hobby aircraft sector, and aviation experts are calling for more thorough investigations into recreational aircraft accidents, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) on Monday.
Aviation consultant and training officer Lorraine MacGillivray said she wanted to see more air crash investigations and less red tape for pilot training following the death of five people in a string of crashes in the state of Victoria between September and November last year, the ABC reported.
However, large passenger carriers received priority when determining what was investigated, said the ATSB Chief Commissioner Angus Mitchell, adding the risk of a fatality was greater around Australia’s 2,300 non-towered aerodromes, calling for pilots to remain vigilant to boost safety.
The ATSB said it could investigate around 70 aviation, maritime, and rail incidents annually, but was notified of more than 8,000 incidents each year, Xinhua news agency reported.
On September 13, last year, one person had died in a light plane crash in the southeastern Australian state of Victoria.
Victoria Police said that a man died when a light aircraft crashed on private property in Redesdale, a small town approximately 100 kilometers northwest of Melbourne.
In a statement, Victoria Police said that the man, who has not been formally identified, died at the scene of the crash.
The pilot was the only occupant of the aircraft.
In another shocking incident, involving a helicopter this time, a pilot was killed when the helicopter flown by him crashed into a hotel in Far North Queensland, in August 2024.
Nautilus Aviation, the Australian company that owned the helicopter, later confirmed that the pilot who was killed in the “unauthorised” flight was a current ground crew employee.
According to the company, a ground crew employee gained unauthorised access to its helicopter hangar at the Cairns International Airport and misappropriated an aircraft.
The pilot, the sole occupant of the helicopter, died when it crashed into the roof of the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel in the northeastern city of Cairns shortly after takeoff, sparking a fire and forcing the evacuation of hundreds of guests.
A top executive of the company later said that the employee — who started working with the company four months ago — held a pilot’s license in New Zealand but had never flown in Australia.
(IANS)
