The Australian Maritime Safety Authority and Hevilift are deploying teams to search for Captain Aikten, Chief pilot Antony Annan, and engineer Emmett Fynn. They left a mayday call about five minutes after leaving the InterOil Drill Rig site at 3.25pm Friday. They were en route to Creek to re-fuel and flying in an area reported to have low visibility at the time.

After days of searching, nothing has been found. Tuesday searchers will be using a helicopter fitted with a magnetometer, used to detect large mineral deposits. They hope it will pick up metal from the missing aircraft. The Australian Defence Force will be deploying two Blackhawks to assist in the search, in addition to the aero-medical evacuation team, additional observers and a downed aircraft recovery team.

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The post Search Continues for Pilot and Crew Missing in Papua New Guinea first appeared on George Hatcher's Air Flight Disaster.

Pilot Arnold Burung did not survive. The injured, Jacob Uropmabin, Timothy Uropmabin, Ramli, and Rady (AKA Yakob Uropmabin,Timotius Uropmabin, Ramly and Radi) were hospitalized at Dian Harapan Hospital in Jayapura.

Pacific Aerospace manufactures planes in New Zealand.

The post Four Injured in Aviation Fire in Papua, Pilot Fatality first appeared on George Hatcher's Air Flight Disaster.

What: PNG Airlines de Havilland Canada DHC-8-102
Where: 20 km (12.5 mls) S of Madang Airport (MAG) (Papua New Guinea)
When: Oct 13, 2011
Who: 4 crew, 28 passengers, 4 survivors
Why: The Png flight crashed 20 miles south of Madang, and was lost and later discovered on fire. 28 died in the crash, but pilots, one passenger and an attendant survived. The Australian Captain broke both legs in the crash. The surviving passenger is a Chinese man who incurred serious burns.

“Based on the information that the pilot gave to the towers which was there’s smoke coming out of the engines and we’re running out of power, doing a forced landing, that’s what they said, which resulted in it crash landing.” The Ministry of Civil Aviation in Papua NG announced unofficially that there was a mechanical problem with the plane. The black box was recovered and sent to Australia for analysis.

A Canadian team from de Havilland is doing an independent investigation.

The post Ministry Opinion on PNG crash first appeared on George Hatcher's Air Flight Disaster.

What: PNG Airlines de Havilland Canada DHC-8-102
Where: 20 km (12.5 mls) S of Madang Airport (MAG) (Papua New Guinea)
When: Oct 13, 2011
Who: 4 crew, 28 passengers, 4 survivors
Why: About 5.15pm, while en route from Lae to Madang, the flight went down in dense forest in bad weather. The pilots managed to send a distress call. Four survivors were pulled from the wreckage and taken to Yamad clinic. The survivors include an 64 year old Australian pilot and a New Zealand pilot and an Asian passenger who was sitting in the seventh seat, who crawled through a crack in the fuselage, and who suffered burns on 27% of his body (including back and arms). Survivors are being transported by boat to Modilon hospital in Madang.

First responders were initially blocked when they could not cross the Guabe river, then a boat suffered engine problems, then the third attempt made it to the scene of the crash. A violent storm and dense forest hampered the rescue efforts, which were facilitated by chopper.

Australia engaged four army Blackhawk helicopters to assist in the rescue. Rescuers on the Gogol river were impeded due to heavy rains. It took four boats to reach the crash site.

PNG quarantined Laes Nadzab airport and grounded the Dash 8 fleet.

Witnesses saw the plane crash on the Guabe River bank and on impact, burst into flame. Most of the passengers were local Papuan parents of Madang’s Divine Word University students. According to a resort manager who went to pick them up from the airport, six of the plane’s occupants — one passenger and five crew members – had reservations to stay at Madang Resort.

PNG Accident Investigation Commission’s spokesman Sid O’Toole talked to the media.

PNG Airlines released the following:

POMSOX/MEDIA RELEASE – PORT MORESBY 10:30 PM THURSDAY, 13th OCTOBER 2011 – AIRLINES PNG ANNOUNCEMENT

We are sad to confirm that there has been an accident involving an Airlines PNG Dash 8 aircraft near Madang late Thursday afternoon.

Email: media.relations@apng.com

AYMD 130602Z 1308/1320 12008KT 9999 SHRA SCT016 SCT030 BKN140 Q1009 1011 1010 1008
AYMD 122301Z 1302/1314 12010KT 9999 SHRA SCT016 SCT030 BKN140 Q1010 1008 1009 1011

The post Papua New Guinea 28 Die in Violent Storm, Forest Crash on the Banks of the Gogol first appeared on George Hatcher's Air Flight Disaster.

So far, there have been no answers in the question of the Chinese built Xian MA-60 Merpati Nusantara Airlines plane which killed 27 people on board when it crashed in Kaimana, West Papua. The plane was moments from landing when it crashed.

There are questions concerning state-owned Merpati Airlines, the state financing, and the planes air-worthiness. There is a local call for the Finance Ministry to publish details of the plane’s purchase.

On Thursday, the black box data of the Chinese made plane was sent to China for decoding.

The Indonesian Aviation Industry suffers from a reputation of questionable safety.

The post Answers Needed in Merpati Plane Crash first appeared on George Hatcher's Air Flight Disaster.

What: Merpati Nusantara Xian MA-60 en route from Sorong to Kaimana
Where: Kaimana, West Papua
When: May 7, 2010 12:21 pm
Who: 21 passengers (including 2 children and a baby), 4 crew, 2 technicians
Why: After flying a holding pattern for a quarter of an hour, the plane was on its final approach when it crashed in shallow water .3 miles before it reached the runway. On impact with the water, the plane broke in two and sank, with the passengers trapped within. Officials say bad weather and low visibility (6,600 ft) are responsible for the crash.

Crash victims are being paid Rp 50 million (US$5,850) by State insurance firm PT Jasa Raharja, according to published reports. The total is 1.35 billion Rp. Reports do not say if this is an interim payment.

The post US$5,850 to Crash Victims first appeared on George Hatcher's Air Flight Disaster.

What: Merpati Nusantara Xian MA-60 en route from Sorong to Kaimana
Where: Kaimana, West Papua
When: May 7, 2010 12:21 pm
Who: 21 passengers (including 2 children and a baby), 4 crew, 2 technicians
Why: After flying a holding pattern for a quarter of an hour, the plane was on its final approach when it crashed in shallow water .3 miles before it reached the runway. On impact with the water, the plane broke in two and sank, with the passengers trapped within. Officials say bad weather and low visibility (6,600 ft) are responsible for the crash.

The divers recovering the bodies from Kaimana Bay have been hampered by heavy rain; those recovered were described as “not intact.”

The Chinese-made plane was new and only had been in operation for just over 600 hours, since its purchase in October. Merpati flies three other Xian MA-60s’.

The post 27 Perish in Kaimana Bay in Merpati Crash first appeared on George Hatcher's Air Flight Disaster.

Pacific Helicopters owner, Mal Smith (who is also Eastern Highlands Province governor) said some of the wreckage was found, but not the engine or Mr Lester. He was hopeful he would be found alive, but three helicopters and two planes searched an area 24 kilometres to the west and 70 kilometres to south of Baluan Island and Mr Lester was not found. Nearby islands are being searched in case he made it to shore.

Lester is from Papua New Guinea

The post Squirrel Crash Kills Aussie Pilot first appeared on George Hatcher's Air Flight Disaster.

ARP assists navigating vessels and provides emergency and temporary pilots consultancy.

The post Papua New Guinea Plane Crash Kills 4 first appeared on George Hatcher's Air Flight Disaster.