Wreckage recovered as ATSB investigators piece together moments before Rottnest seaplane crash

ABC NEWS (Australia)

Authorities have recovered the seaplane that crashed off Rottnest Island in Western Australia on Tuesday, killing three people. The wreckage is relatively intact and will form a key part of efforts to understand what caused the fatal crash.

Transcript

00:00Two days after the Cessna seaplane plunged into the water off Rottnest Island, killing

00:07three people, authorities went to the ocean floor for answers.

00:13This is obviously quite a delicate operation. One, we want to do as little additional damage

00:17to that aircraft as we raise it, but equally there's a number of components within the

00:22aircraft that we want to get to as quickly as we can.

00:25The wreckage, including part of the plane's fuselage, engine and cabin, was lifted by

00:29crane and put onto a barge. It was taken to a police facility in Perth. The priorities

00:35are the recovery of recording devices such as mobile phones, cameras and monitoring equipment.

00:41We look at those things that are likely to be further damaged by exposure into the elements.

00:45So they tend to be the ones that we focus on first. We know where they are, we know

00:50how to get them out quite quickly.

00:52Police divers had already recovered the bodies of three people, the 34-year-old West Australian

00:57pilot James Wong, a Swiss woman and a Danish man, both in their 60s. Four others were rescued

01:03and airlifted to Perth. Witnesses told the ABC it was horrifying to watch.

01:08As it was taking off it sort of lifted and then unfortunately I think the howling southerly

01:13caught the right wing and lifted the plane and the left wing touched the water and the

01:18whole plane span around and just went sort of a nosedive into the water.

01:22Authorities will speak to witnesses as part of the investigation as well as examining

01:26footage taken by members of the public, along with weather records and maintenance logs.

01:31The plane is owned by Swan River Seaplanes, which has paused operations.

01:35We'll be advised by the authorities and the experts in relation to any measures we need

01:40to take.

01:41If any lessons can be learnt from it, then they certainly will be and will be put in

01:48place by the government in the form of any new regulations that are required.

01:54The ATSB will deliver its preliminary report containing only factual information in the

01:59next two months. A final report with a full analysis of the crash and safety findings

02:03will take longer.

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