July 14, 2008 - 12:15PM

Two bodies have been found in the wreckage of an ultra-light plane that went missing yesterday in north Queensland.

Australian Maritime Safety Authority spokesman Mick Spinks said a search helicopter located the wreckage near a cattle property north-west of the town of Charters Towers about 11am today.

The helicopter landed and confirmed that a man and woman aboard were dead, Mr Spinks said.

The couple were from Kurrajong, NSW.

An investigation into the crash will be carried out by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau.

The aircraft was one of five ultra-lights on an outing from Mount Garnet, west of Innisfail, to Charters Towers yesterday.

The other four aircraft successfully completed the journey yesterday.

A police spokesman said contact with the overdue ultra-light was lost about 1pm yesterday.

The inquiry into the crash, presided over by retired NSW Supreme Court justice David Lavine, also found that the main cause of the crash was pilot error, but that this could not be viewed in isolation with other factors and no individual blame should be placed on the captain.

The report's findings were released today by the Chief of the Defence Force, Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston, who was given the report over six months ago.

"As is often the case the accident was a result of a culmination of factors," he said.

The Black Hawk crashed while attempting to land on HMAS Kanimbla during a special operations assault exercise on November 29, 2006, which was designed to get troops to a specific area quickly.

The crash killed pilot Captain Mark Bingley and Special Air Service Trooper Joshua Porter after the Black Hawk slammed into the aft deck of the ship and plunged into the sea.

Captain Bingley was rescued from the water and later died, While SAS Trooper Porter's body was recovered from the seabed in March.

The report has made 56 recommendations to reduce risk during special operations, of which Air Chief Marshal Houston says 56 have been agreed to, one of which is that the squadron's flying standards be externally audited.

The approach procedures of how aircraft approach their landings during special operations has also been changed after a review from test pilots in the Aircraft Research and Development Unit.

"These operations require a very fine balance between safety and achieving the mission," he said.

"The squadron's 'can-do' attitude meant they were taking greater risks to achieve their missions. This led to an erosion of their safety standards."

The board of inquiry found that pilots of 171 Squadron had progressively become more aggressive in their flying during operations, virtually eliminating any margin of error.

The progressive change toward riskier flying behaviour was also combined with a lack of supervision, the pressure of preparing for operations, the relocation of the squadron of Sydney and the high pressure involved in special operations to decrease the safety of operations.

Air Chief Marshal Houston said over several years the pilots' approach to landing became faster and faster, in order to achieve the mission outcome of maximising surprise and minimising vulnerability.

"As a consequence we ended up with a set of circumstances where one mistake was going to end up with an incident or at worse an accident as happened on this occasion," he said.

However the said the pilots believed that their actions were authorised and that they were flying safely.

"They eventually got to a situation where they were flying on the absolute limit ... they went past the right balance of safety and mission achievement," Air Chief Marshal Houston said.

However, Air Chief Marshal Houston said no disciplinary action would be taken against anyone.

He also confirmed that a Black Hawk was involved in a "heavy landing" during an exercise in East Timor, in June last year, while the inquiry was sitting.

In the wake of the crash in East Timor an audit of all rotary wing aircraft took place and found there was a high degree of safety compliance and that 171 Squadron was now better supervised and operating within safety margins.

Air Chief Marshal Houston says the Defence Force remains committed to counter-terrorism exercises that are realistic and demanding but admits that training must also be safe.

"This board of inquiry report highlights that this training must strike the right balance between safety and achieving the mission," he said.

A copy of the report has been given to the families of Captain Bingley and SAS Trooper Joshua Porter.

It is the first time a board of inquiry for the Defence Force has been presided over by a civilian, Air Chief Marshal Houston said.

Video footage of the accident can be found  HERE

Jeff's passing away last weekend after a short illness has shocked the Australian rotorcraft fraternity. A well thought of and respected member of the Gyocopter community, manufacturer of the Gyroz gyrocopter and Advanced Kinetics Rotor-Blades, Jeff's passing will leave a void that will not be easily filled.

From all of us at Rotorcraft Australia, sincere condolences to Jeff's family and friends.

 Robin Moore remembers the last words his grandfather, John Miller, said to him Sunday night.

"I guess my flying days are over," recalled Moore, a LaGrange resident.

Miller, a 102-year-old Town of Poughkeepsie resident, was pronounced dead at Vassar Brothers Medical Center several hours later Monday morning, marking the end of one of the most storied aviation careers in this country's history. He was widowed and is survived by two daughters and several grandchildren.

Miller's daughter, Trish Taylor, said he died from natural causes after spending two nights at the hospital.

"He was aware that he wasn't what he used to be and it really annoyed him," said Taylor, a Town of Poughkeepsie resident. "He had a health fetish and he always ate right. He never took prescription medication until the very end."

"From Jennys to jets" was a term Miller often used to describe his aviation career and it was accurate. Miller began flying in 1924 when he was 18.

He caught the flying bug at a young age when he watched aeronautical pioneer Glenn Hammond Curtiss land his plane, made partially of bamboo, in a field near Miller's Poughkeepsie home. Curtiss was on his way from Albany to New York City to win a $10,000 prize.

Miller first got his hands on airplane at 17, when a barnstormer gave him a hand-me-down Curtiss Jenny aircraft, a biplane designed by Glenn Curtiss. Miller fixed the plane and learned about aeronautical principles by reading "Aerobatics" by Capt. Horatio Barber.

Moore said his grandfather soon started a flying taxi service.

"He became a commercial pilot on his second flight," Moore said. "Then his father made him take some more lessons down the road, but he usually left that part of the story out."

Miller eventually sold the Jenny and attended the Pratt Institute for Mechanical Engineering, graduating in June 1927. During his stint at Pratt, Miller acknowledged skipping class once in May 1927. He skipped school so he could witness Charles Lindbergh take off from Roosevelt Field in Long Island for his history-making, transatlantic flight to Paris.

In 1931, Miller became one of the first people to buy the revolutionary Pitcairn autogiro, the precursor to the helicopter. Miller became the first man to fly cross-country in the autogiro, to Amelia Earhart's dismay. Earhart had planned to become the first person to make the trip.

Miller's career included stints as a test pilot during Word War II, a commercial airline pilot and airmail deliverer. Three of the airplanes Miller has flown are exhibited at the National Air & Space Museum in Washington. Miller also is the first pilot to land an aircraft - an autogiro - on the roof of a building.

"He really was someone that a lot of pilots here looked up to," said John Trosie, instructor and chairperson for Dutchess Community College aviation program. "He was really a local legend and to have someone like that here really made it special for us."

H.G. Frautschy, executive director of the Milwaukee-based Experimental Aircraft Association's Vintage Aircraft Association and editor of Vintage Airplane magazine, said Miller's loss would be felt throughout the aviation world.

"The fact that he lived so long and witnessed all that he did is great, but he was literally in the middle of all that history," Frautschy said. "You hate to speak in absolutes, but I think he is the last of a generation."

Taylor said her family is planning a private memorial service and that Miller did not want a traditional funeral.

Instead, Miller's family is following through with his request to have his body donated to the Anatomy Gifts Registry.

"It was his way of being modest," Taylor said. "He wanted his body donated to science."

Reach Rasheed Oluwa at roluwa@poughkeepsiejournal.com or 845-437-4823.

Powered by the well proven Subaru EJ 25 single overhead cam engine, and coupled to an Autoflight 2.24 to 1 gearbox, the Kruza drives a 72” diameter three blade wide chord composite Revolution propeller. Twenty nine foot (29ft) Revolution composite rotors are what keeps the Kruza aloft.

The Kruza is a modern, safe, true cross country gyroplane which competes with many of the fixed wing ultralight aircraft available today. The Kruza is designed for Australian conditions and is manufactured in Echuca on the Victorian/New South Wales border. Interested parties can inspect the "Kruza" both finished and under construction at the Echuca factory. Introductory flights can be arranged by prior appointment.

The Kruza is currently undergoing certification with ASRA.

Start your planning now as the Super Light Aircraft Club of WA has just made the decision to bid for the 2010 Nationals. We will be asking ASRA to see if they can consider & approve our bid for 2010 this year so that ASRA membrs can start planning a 2010 holiday in WA.
 

Guys & Girls,

Some basic parameters,

 KISS

Country location so Aerodrome endorsement not required.
1 to 2 hours from Perth so people from OS/Eastern states can have easy access.
On airfield camping if required, otherwise motels,hotel or farmstays will be the go.
5 days duration, 2 days Comps (usual stuff) 2 days Nav-ex's to interesting places, 1 day seminars/rest etc. Good Friday till following Tuesday for the National Fy-In.

It will be held at a private airstrip between Hervey Bay and Maryborough - Goodwin Field ( more details on the website ). Funds raised will go to the 2 aero clubs involved in organising the event, the Variety Club for kids and the Royal Flying Doctors Service. Goodwin strip is within the Hervey Bay / Maryborough CTAF(R). All aircraft will have to be equiped with a working radio. Please register on the website if you are coming along, we understand that weather may get in your way but we do need an idea of what numbers to expect. We would rather you register and not turn up than to turn up unexpected.

Friday - 6th June 08

• 1600 Pre Dinner Drinks from 4pm (All Profits to the RFDS) - Major Sponsor Setup Time & Aero Clubs Site Preperation & Induction
• 1800 h’ordeurves with Rod & Linda Robertson - Gold Coin Donation to Variety Club of Queensland
• 1900 BBQ Dinner ($15.00) by HBAC
• 2000 Yarn around the Bonfire

Saturday - 7th June 08
• 0730 Hearty Breakfast ($10.00) by MAC
• 1000 Mystery Flight Country Pub Lunch 25min ETA
• 1230 Skydive with HB Skydivers on the 1/2 Hour
• 1500 Bundy Formation Flying Club Display
• 1600 Pre Dinner Drinks from 4pm by Rod Robertson (All Profits to the RFDS)
• 1900 BBQ Dinner ($15.00) by BAC
• 2000 Entertainment - DUO TBA

Sunday - 8th June 08
• 0600 Dawn Patrol (Wing Commander - Mick Ryan)
• 0830 Hearty Breakfast ($10.00) by HBAC
• 0930 Skydive with HB Skydivers on the 1/2 Hour
• 1000 Fraser Island Scenic Flights (Wing Commander - Mick Ryan)
• 1400 PAR 3 Golf at Eagles Nest Golf Course - 9 Holes
• 1600 Pre Dinner Drinks from 4pm by Rod Robertson - (All Profits to the RFDS)
• 1900 BBQ Dinner ($15.00) by MAC
• 2000 Poss Entertainment - TBA / BONFIRE

Monday - 9th June 08
• 0730 Hearty Breakfast ($10.00) by BAC
• 0830 Skydive with Hervey Bay Skydivers
• 0900 Depart at Your Leisure on the Hour
• 0930 Skydive with Hervey Bay Skydivers on the 1/2 Hour

CAMPING
Camping is Bush Style Camping on a Level Grassed Area.
Portable Toilets & Shower will be provided on site. (There is also dam to swim in though). It is recommended you bring a ground sheet and fly for your tent.
Fresh Water is also available and is Potable to your campsite.
Please do not feed the Cows or Horses on site (Separate Paddocks)

PLANES
Plane Parking is available adjacent to the camping area.
Tie Downs are not provided and it is recommended that you bring your own pegs and ropes for tie downs.
Pre Flight Fuel Check - Fuel is to be dumped in receptacles provided and not to be thrown on the ground due to the dual use of livestock on the premises.

FACILITIES
Apart from Toilets & Showers, We will also be offering full Bar Facilities under licence with all proceeds going to a Charity TBA.
Meals will be provided for Breakfast & Dinner Only.
There will be Vending Machines Visiting during the weekend for Coffee, Pies, Soft Drinks, Ice Creams etc.

Michael and Linda Howard had planned to spend their day fishing and beachcombing on a sand-bar near Groper Creek, but their plans were literally turned upside down.

Mr Howard said a freak gust of wind had come from nowhere as he was attempting to land his two-seater Gyro Magni Helicopter, causing the light aircraft to crash about 10am.

"We were just going like we do every weekend to put a fishing line in," Mr Howard said.

"We were landing on the beach and almost came to a stop, but the rotor blade was still moving, when a gust of wind came from side on and flipped us on our side.

"I got a few scratches and bruises, including a bruised chest. But anyone who can walk away is lucky."

The Howards activated their emergency beacon and awaited rescue.

Emergency Management Queensland (EMQ) helicopter rescue aircraft captain Russ Pyers said his team had some difficulty locating the stricken craft.

He said the emergency beacon was only activate for about 30 seconds when the signal stopped, before they could track down the couple on a sand bar called Peter's Island.

"It was a lovely clear day, with just light breezes, it was perfect for a visual search," Mr Pyers said.

"We found the helicopter after about ten minutes – there was a skid mark about 40 or 50 metres along the beach.

"By then the owner had rightened it, but it had a broken rotor."

Mr Pyers said the rescue crew had prepared to undertake a winch rescue, but were instead able to land on the beach beside the light aircraft.

A paramedic assessed the couple at the scene, before they were airlifted to Ayr Hospital for a further check-up.

"It really did not seem like that big of a deal," Mrs Howard last night said.

"We were on the beach ... the sand was softer than expected."

Mr Howard and his wife were released from hospital yesterday afternoon and immediately went about retrieving the gyrocopter, which hadn't fared so well.

The rotor was badly damaged and Mr Howard yesterday contracted a local helicopter company to winch his plane to safety.

Mr Howard said the salvage operation had cost $5000 and he expected the damage bill would reach $30,000.

Mr Howard and his gyrocopter are well known on the Burdekin.

He regularly buzzes over townships since he imported the Italian-built gyro in 2006 and recently helped retrieve flood-stricken residents.

"I rescued people when the floods were on here and took people here and there," Mr Howard said.

A Townsville Police spokesman said the Australian Sports Rotacraft Association would investigate the incident.