Falling from the sky 18 March, 2008 at 11:50 am
When I arrived home from work late this this evening my father was on the phone, standing by the kitchen table. Unusually, he interrupted his conversation to greet me. He then told me that a friend was killed in a plane crash, before returning to his conversation.
Apparently people have been calling dad all day to see if he is all right. Mum says he cried his eyes out this afternoon at home. He’s known this guy for about 20 years; worked with him for many years, socialised with him, gone on trips up the coast with him. I’ve heard his name mentioned many times, and on the occasions I’ve met him, he’s always been friendly and has nice things to say. Dad said tonight that he’d liked me, and would ask would ask how I was going from time to time. From what I recall, he was a pretty calm sort of person, the sort of person who gives softly spoken but meaningful advice. I think dad has in the past mentioned opportunities to go flying with him, and I was vaguely aware that he was a stunt pilot – something that I probably shan’t forget now: he died doing some sort of test or review flying a Pitts Special S2A biplane.
A strange link to this tragedy is the story from another friend and work colleague of both my dad and the pilot – someone I have known for many years. His girlfriend’s father had met with the pilot who died at the airport in the morning, and flew in another (the only other?) Pitts Special (I don’t know whether as a pilot or passenger). When news of the crash arrived, this other friend was probably in a terrible position of expecting to hear bad news about either his friend or his girlfriend’s father. I can’t imagine he’s had a good day, and I hope that he is okay.
The flight instructor who was also in the plane at the time of the crash ‘walked away’ from it. I understand that he is injured, but there are conflicting reports – eg one saying minor injuries, another saying he was in a serious condition in hospital. I wish him a speedy recovery and good health.
Below are some of news articles covering the tragedy.
-G.
One pilot killed and another walked away
Dylan Welch
March 18, 2008 – 2:54PMA stunt plane crashed into trees during training in Sydney’s south-west this morning, killing one man and injuring another.
It is understood the man who survived was Red Baron Flight Training chief instructor Keith Ker, who has worked with the company based at Bankstown Airport for about 10 years.
He is in a stable condition at Nepean Hospital.
Mr Ker had been sitting in the front seat when the plane crashed into trees.
He was reportedly already up and walking near the badly damaged bi-plane by the time help arrived.
Emergency crews had been called to The Northern Road, Oran Park, about two kilometres north of the Oran Park turn-off about 11.30am.
They found a Pitts Special S2A biplane owned by Red Baron, smashed into the ground only metres from The Northern Road.
It is understood the other man – also a well-known and experienced aerobatic flyer – was on a flight review.
“It appears the plane has struck a tree in flight, causing it to crash land,” a police spokeswoman said.
“One man was killed while another suffered only minor injuries during the accident.”
The Northern Road is currently closed in both directions, the spokeswoman said.
The Air Transport Safety Bureau will investigate the accident, a spokesman said.
An investigative team will travel from Canberra later today to examine the wreckage, he said.
Link: smh.com.au
‘Miracle’ survivor emerges from plane crash
By Edith Bevin
March 18, 2008 02:25pmWITNESSES have called a man surviving a light plane crash a “miracle”, after the incident killed another passenger.
The crash, which happened earlier today at 11.30am, occurred after a light plane crashed in to bushland in far western Sydney at Cobbitty.
Witnesses described the survival of one of the passengers of the Pitt Special plane as a “miracle”.
Police said the survivor, who is now in a serious condition at hospital, was up and walking around the crash site.
The other passenger of the plane was trapped inside and was already dead.Both men are experienced pilots.
The plane, which belongs to Red Baron Adventures, had been hired for a private flight.
Police said it had left Camden Airport minutes before it crashed heavily in to bushland about five metres south of The Northern Rd.
Superintendent Ian Foscholo said that the plane was almost unrecognisable because of the damage sustained in the massive crash.
A spokesman for Red Baron Adventures said: “We are all a bit shaken at the moment.”
Although the plane is hired out for acrobatic flights, Camden Airport workers said said they did not believe that the plane had been doing any manoeuvres in the lead up to the crash.
Police and the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) are investigating.
Link: The Daily Telegraph
Pilot killed, but instructor survives crash
Adam Bennett
March 19, 2008A FLIGHT instructor has walked away from the crash of a stunt biplane in Sydney which claimed the life of a fellow pilot.
Authorities said the chief flight instructor with Red Baron Flight Training, Keith Ker, 41, was lucky to be alive after the crash near Oran Park yesterday.
A man in his 40s was killed and Mr Ker injured when their stunt biplane clipped trees during a training flight. The Pitts Special S2A biplane crashed two kilometres north of a turn-off on the Northern Road, metres from the side of the road.
Mr Ker, from Berowra Heights, was taken to Nepean Hospital with facial lacerations, where he was said to be in a stable condition.
The owner of the Red Baron training school, Stephan Kljajic, said the accident was a “dreadful tragedy” that had happened during routine training. The man who died was undergoing his flight review. “My sympathy and thoughts are with the family of the pilot,” he said.
“We will do everything we can to co-operate with authorities to determine the cause of this tragedy.”
Police and the Australian Transport Safety Bureau are investigating the crash to determine whether it could be blamed on pilot error or engine failure.
A spokesman for the Civil Aviation Safety Authority, Peter Gibson, said the Pitts Special had a good safety record and was a “very robust” aircraft.
However, he said a member of the public had contacted the authority to say the engine of the Pitts Special had been “running rough” before the accident. “That’s been passed on to the Australian Transport Safety Bureau,” Mr Gibson said.
Link: smh.com.au
Just stumbled upon your blog – Bryscen Teape-Davis was my uncle, and I was just curious how your father knew him? I may have met your father, since I knew a lot of Bryscen’s friends before the crash and met more at his funeral.
Thanks for your beautiful tribute here – it’s a lovely thing to find floating around, I’ll be sure to let my dad know about it.