4 Britons feared dead in holiday seaplane crash
Tourist firm used by Pippa suspends all flights after 6 die in tragedy
FOUR Britons are feared to be among six killed yesterday when a seaplane crashed into a river in Australia minutes after take-off.
A boy of 11 and the pilot also died in the tragedy as the group took part in a luxury ‘fly and dine’ New Year’s Eve tourist flight.
The party had enjoyed lunch at a top restaurant around 30 miles from Sydney before embarking on the fatal return journey.
Reports last night suggested the seaplane – from a company often used by celebrities and the wealthy – may have ‘clipped’ trees before plunging into the river. Footage taken from a boat appears to show the doomed aircraft moments before it hit the Hawkesbury River, killing all six on board.
The Britons are thought to be from the same family.
The group had been enjoying the same four-hour tour package enjoyed by Pippa Middleton in May during her honeymoon with husband James Matthews. The flights, operated by Sydney Seaplanes, are scheduled to last 20 minutes each way.
For £309 per person, the company’s website boasts that guests will ‘indulge in an exceptional three-course lunch before flying over the magnificent icons of the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge’. Yesterday all future excursions were suspended by the firm, which has an ‘unblemished’ safety record. The single-engine aircraft came down off Jerusalem Bay near Cowan at around 3.10pm local time, according to police.
Onlooker Myles Baptiste described the moment he saw the seaplane hit the water. ‘It made a tight right-hand turn and as it actually turned around, the wings dipped and it nosedived straight into the water,’ he told broadcaster 9News. Weather conditions had been a ‘bit bumpy’ but ‘nothing to be concerned about’, one woman at the scene added. The aircraft, a DHC-2 Beaver with the registration number VH-NOO, ‘sank rapidly’ after hitting the river, transport experts revealed.
Divers yesterday recovered six bodies from the wreckage as it lay 43ft underwater while investigators were trying to establish how the aircraft crashed. Debris could also be seen floating in the water as well as engine oil. In a statement, the Australian Transport Safety Board said: ‘The sequence of events leading up to the accident are not yet understood.’
Authorities were last night trying to confirm the identities of the dead and inform their next of kin. The plane crashed while flying a party of five from Cottage Point to Rose Bay on Sydney Harbour ahead of the New Year’s Eve fireworks display.
Before the smash, the group had dined at the Cottage Point Inn, where ‘exceptional cuisine’ on offer includes Wagyu beef, scallops and raw wild kingfish. Others to have enjoyed the trip include Ed Sheeran and Bill Gates.
Not long before the crash, Sydney Seaplanes had reportedly posted on Facebook: ‘Wow, what a year 2017 has been for us!’
But within hours, it issued a statement saying flights would be suspended until further notice.
Managing director Aaron Shaw said the company was ‘deeply shocked’ and added in a statement: ‘We wish to pass on our heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of the passengers and pilot who were tragically killed.
‘We do not yet know the cause of the accident. We are dedicating our full resources in assisting the New South Wales Police, the Australian Transport Safety Board, Civil Aviation Safety Authority and other relevant authorities to understand the cause of the accident.’
He added: ‘Sydney Seaplanes has been operating since 2005, have undertaken thousands of flights in that period and have had an unblemished safety record until now. Our aircraft are professionally maintained to manufacturer’s specifications and our seaplane pilots are some of the most experienced in the world.’