Pilot training and aircraft safety in spotlight after fatal crashes

ABC NEWS (Australia)

Questions are being asked about the safety of Australia’s hobby aircraft industry after a string of fatal plane crashes. The body for hobby aviators has defended its safety standards but some are asking whether the small aircraft flown by recreational pilots are safe.

Transcript

00:00Flying instructor Lorraine McGilvray knows all too well the importance of flying safely,

00:09but she says standards are slipping.

00:11We need answers and we need to not be losing young lives like this anymore, or any life

00:16for that matter.

00:17Across Australia last year, 27 people lost their lives in 20 general aviation crashes,

00:23ranging from small aircraft and helicopters to paragliders and home-built planes.

00:28Kahuna pilot Keith Link walked away from his own light plane crash in 2020 when his

00:33engine failed mid-flight and thanks his training and aircraft for saving his life.

00:38He wants the Australian aviation industry to take another look at what constitutes a

00:42safe flying.

00:43I look at some of these planes and I do shake my head.

00:46They worry me.

00:47One of the issues of concern is the different rules and standards for hobby aircraft and

00:52pilots.

00:53The main difference between the two different types of certification is what we call instrument

00:57flight.

00:58In RAOs, we fly under visual conditions, which means no clouds, no storms, no inclement weather.

01:06Recreational Aviation Australia's mantra is there is a pilot in every home, and says the

01:10current rules make flying accessible but safe.

01:14We teach simple flying for simple aircraft.

01:16The difference in regulation also extends to how crashes are investigated.

01:20The Australian Transport Safety Bureau, or ATSB, doesn't always look into crashes involving

01:26recreational or hobby aircraft, and some in the industry say that that means problems

01:31can go undetected.

01:32The ATSB says the statistics over the last five years don't show an increase in accidents,

01:38but the consequences of crashes in hobby aircraft are severe.

01:42Particularly when operating at low speeds at low altitudes, the margin of error is very

01:48small.

01:49Keith Link wants a tightening of minimum standards for pilots and aircraft.

01:53There's no question.

01:54You've got to do it.

01:56You've got to fly.

01:57You've got to have the plane at that standard.

01:58Fighting to keep Australia's skies safe.

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