Crash plane wasn’t properly maintained
AIRCRAFT’S FATAL ENGINE FAIL CAUSED BY OIL LOSS
A LIGHT aircraft involved in a fatal crash which killed two people had not been properly maintained, an investigation has found.
Pilot Nigel Dodds, 58, and passenger Valerie Barnes, 73, both from Gateshead, died when the Piper PA-28 aircraft came down on the Queen’s Sandringham Estate on September 11 last year.
Businessman Mr Dodds, from Dunston, was flying the plane, in which Mrs Barnes, from Whickham, was a passenger.
Both were pronounced dead at the scene when they came down in marshland near the village of Wolferton, Norfolk.
An inquiry by the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) revealed the plane crashed into an old sea wall after the engine failed during a flight from Southend to Newcastle.
Investigators found the problem was caused by oil loss, noting the engine had not been maintained per the manufacturer’s instructions while it was unused for long periods and parked outside.
During the flight, Mr Dodds transmitted a Mayday call stating he had a “very rough-running engine”.
A controller at the Distress and Diversion emergency cell at Swanwick, Hampshire, advised the pilot that Great Massingham Airfield was around nine miles away.
Mr Dodds replied he would not make it that far, adding: “It’s gonna be a field.”
This was the last transmission received from the aircraft and was 30 seconds before radar contact was lost.
Tributes flooded in for both Mr Dodds and former school worker Mrs Barnes.
Friend Anna Scott said: “Nigel was the kindest, loveliest person you’d ever meet.
“He always made me smile and he will be sadly missed.”
Valerie Barnes worked and volunteered for 23 years at Kelvin Grove Primary School and established herself as a valuable member of the Bensham community.
Speaking just days after her death, school headteacher Andy Jones revealed her death left the school in “absolute shock”.
Administrative assistant Susan Herring, who worked alongside Valerie at Kelvin Grove for almost a decade, believes her former colleague’s heavy involvement at the school proves just how much she loved it.
She said: “She was a caring person. She cared about the school and the children.
“Valerie’s job was very important to her. When she actually retired and left it was a sad day, the children were quite upset because they all loved her.”
Mum-of-one Valerie worked as the school’s admin officer, but continued to volunteer and support the children following her retirement.