Four people dead as plane crashes in Somerset - 14 November 2015

[whole diary]

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

Four people dead as plane crashes in Somerset


The group was heading towards Dunkeswell Aerodrome when the plane crashed, police said

Four people have been killed in a crash involving a six-seater light aircraft in Somerset.

Two men and two women were in the plane which came down in a field near Churchinford shortly before midday.

They were heading from the Surrey area towards Dunkeswell Aerodrome in east Devon, according to Avon and Somerset Police.

The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB^▸ (Air Accident Investigation Branch)) has been informed and is deploying a team of investigators.

Supt Richard Corrigan said: "This is a very sad incident in which four people have tragically lost their lives. It's too early to give any further details about the victims but we're ensuring specially trained officers are making contact with their next-of-kin and giving them all the support they need. We've been working very closely with our colleagues from the other emergency services at the scene to make the area safe and ensure the resulting investigation can proceed. There are road closures in place and we'd respectfully ask people not to attend the scene."

Emergency crews from Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service and South Western Ambulance Service were sent to the scene, along with the Devon Air Ambulance and a police helicopter.

[TonyK]

It is very sad. I have flown into Dunkeswell a couple of times, and it's a lovely friendly airfield. It is 256m above sea level, though, making it much closer to the weather, and not somewhere I would have flown out of choice in conditions such as today's weather.

[Chris from Nailsea]

An update, from the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

Somerset plane crash dead 'from the same family'

The four people killed in a plane crash in Somerset are believed to be from the same family, police have said.

They died on Saturday when the light aircraft they were travelling in crashed into a field near the village of Churchinford.

The family members, from Surrey, were a 56-year-old man, a 55-year-old woman, a 23-year-old woman and a man aged 20.

[TonyK]

The Mail reports that the occupants were a man and wife, their 23-year-old daughter and 20-year-old son, from the Surrey area.

The aircraft was a PA^▸ (Public Address)-46 Malibu Mirage, which is a six-seater piston engined pressurised aircraft, suitable for flying under instrument flight rules, with the right training and ratings on the licence of course. It is not the entry level aircraft that I used to enjoy flying, and there are only 8 registered with the CAA^» (Civil Aviation Authority - about). Dunkeswell is not equipped for instrument landings.

[Chris from Nailsea]

An update, from the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

Family death crash pilot 'poor under pressure' instructors say

A pilot who died along with his family when the plane he was flying crashed was "poor under pressure", his instructors have told investigators.

Philip Garvey, 56, his wife Ann, 55, and their children Emily, 23, and Daniel, 20, died when their plane came down in Somerset in November 2015.

They were flying from Surrey to Devon.

The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB^▸ (Air Accident Investigation Branch)) said it was possible Mr Garvey tried to manually start landing while the autopilot was still on.

Mr Garvey had taken off from Fairoakes Airport, close to the family home in Woking, and was heading to Dunkeswell Aerodrome.

The AAIB's report said it was an overcast and rainy day and all planned flights at Dunkeswell had been cancelled because of the weather.

Several witnesses told investigators they heard a sound like a plane doing "aerobatics" before the Piper Malibu Mirage appeared from the clouds and hit the ground near Churchinford, south of Taunton.

The AAIB said: "The evidence from the autopilot examination system suggested that, as the pilot turned on to the final approach and started to descend, the autopilot may not have been disengaged due to a mental lapse, incorrect button selection or a technical fault."

The plane was seen to quickly climb into cloud before coming down.

The AAIB concluded it was "unable to determine with certainty the reason for the initial rapid climb" but said attempting to override the autopilot would have caused the plane to go "nose up" as it would fight to maintain its set height.

While the aircraft could still have been controllable, it said "recovery may have been beyond his capabilities".

Mr Garvey had been a pilot since 2012 and had flown to Dunkeswell 25 times since 2013, including 14 times from Fairoaks.

His instructors told investigators he was "less able than average pilots at multi-tasking and poor at prioritising especially when under pressure".

Another instructor said Mr Garvey "would often have difficulty dealing with an unusual or unexpected condition".

RIP, the Garvey family. 

[TonyK]

RIP, indeed, and condolences to their surviving daughter.

I have read the Air Accident Investigation Branch report, which didn't reach complete conclusions as to what happened. There was radar evidence, both primary radar (the one that sends a radar wave and waits for the reflection) and the Secondary Surveillance Radar (which reads the transponder on the aircraft) for almost the entire flight.
It looks as if the flight went normally until the pilot hit cloud close to Dunkeswell. There were reports of an aircraft sounding like it was doing acrobatics above the clouds, and the radar showed sudden climbs and falls.  The inspector speculated that the pilot may have left the autopilot engaged (it should be off before lining up to land), and may have made control inputs with the control yoke that the autopilot corrected. This will put the aircraft out of trim. Add to that the pilot being in cloud, with the disorientation that causes, and it looks as though he finally stalled and simply dropped to the ground. The damage showed a high angle of attack, suggesting a stall.
The pilot held a IMC rating which permitted flight in cloud, but that would not have permitted him to make an instrument landing in the conditions on the day - even if Dunkeswell had the equipment. His correct course of action would have been to say "I'm not landing there!", then diverted to Exeter. I think I read that they were flying to Dunkeswell to pick up another daughter, which may have had an influence on the decision to try to land, but once he got lost in the cloud, things went from bad to irretrievable. "Press-on-itis" is the slang term.
Of note is the immense level of detail gone into by the AAIB^▸ (Air Accident Investigation Branch). Just about every component that could have had an effect on the performance of the aircraft was taken apart and examined minutely, and test flights with a similar plane were undertaken to test the theory of the autopilot being on, and to examine the accuracy of radar coverage - the aircraft was still visible on Heathrow's radar.