Source: Radio New Zealand
The plane sank after an emergency landing off Cape Brett in the Bay of Islands. Peter de Graaf
Efforts are about to get underway to locate and recover the wreckage of a plane that crashed in the Bay of Islands on Monday.
Northland harbourmaster Jim Lyle said the hard part will be finding the light plane, which sank off Cape Brett after an emergency landing on the water around 10am.
It appeared the engine had “conked out” in mid-air, forcing the pilot to execute a textbook emergency landing on the water.
Lyle said the two men were rescued unharmed by the crew of a nearby recreational fishing boat and brought to shore at Paihia.
Dive contractors planned to use a remote operational vessel, similar to a drone but designed for underwater use, to search for the plane.
If found, the plane was so light – just 380kg – it might be possible to attach a rope using the drone and winch it onto a vessel, Lyle said.
“So if we can find it, I think we’ve got a good chance of recovering it.”
The alarm was raised by the crew of a tourist boat at Motukōkako/Hole in the Rock, who saw the single-engine plane go down.
Regional council staff tried to reach the plane before it sank but it was already on its way to the bottom when they arrived.
Lyle said the lightweight aluminium and carbon-fibre aircraft could effectively glide to the sea floor and travel a significant distance underwater, depending on the currents.
“We don’t know how far it will go, and she could be anywhere from 30 to 40 metres down, maybe deeper. So it will be touch and go if we can find it, it’s a small plane and there’s a lot of room out there.”
The plane had gone down in a restricted fishing area but pollution was not a major concern.
The little aviation fuel it had on board was light and would dissipate quickly.
Council staff at the scene on Monday did not see any fuel on the surface.
Lyle said the two men on board were lucky with the sea conditions.
“There wasn’t much sea running. It was quite a calm sort of day, just a bit of swell. If it had been a bit windier or choppier, they might not have had so much luck. And because it was a nice day, there was lots of boats out there fishing to pick them up.”
Lyle said it was the first time since he became harbourmaster that a plane had sunk in the Bay of Islands.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
