Queensland “family joy flight” ends in tragic crash, leading to the death of four people including two children
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Queensland “family joy flight” ends in tragic crash, leading to the death of four people including two children
A "family joy flight" has ended in a tragic plane crash, leading to the death of four including two children, a father, and a pilot.
Among those who were killed was Brisbane businessman Robert Watterson who owned the Rockwell Commander 114 with registration VH-WMM which crashed into the water around 9 am local time on Sunday.
A Rockwell Commander 114 with registration VH-WMM crashed into the water in Redcliffe, leading to the death of four individuals. Credit: 7News.
Mr Watterson was a prominent businessman from the Moreton Bay area and was not related to the other passengers — a 41-year-old man, his 10-year-old daughter and 9-year-old son — who also died in the crash, Queensland Police reported.
It was also believed that the flight was a "prearranged joy flight" and was understood to be unpaid.
The aircraft was owned by prominent millionaire businessman Robert Watterson who was piloting the plane when it crashed. Credit: Facebook.
Queensland Police Inspector Craig White said: “The families became aware when they knew the aircraft hadn’t returned on-site and they began looking at social media posts.”
“The family are deeply traumatised, as you can expect.”
Inspector White also said that the private plane was seen disappearing behind two mangroves before another plane spotted the wrecked aircraft shortly after.
The bodies of the four occupants were recovered by the police at 12 pm.
Authorities said that they will continue their investigation into the cause of the accident.
Chief Commissioner of the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) Angus Mitchell deployed aircraft operation and maintenance teams from Brisbane and Canberra to determine the nature of the crash, saying that the ATSB will release a preliminary report in six to eight weeks.
Mr Mitchell also urged potential witnesses to come forward to help authorities with the investigation.
A multi-agency operation will also be involved in the investigation, according to Queensland Police.
“A multi-agency operation is underway with Queensland Water Police officers and divers along with the Forensic Crash Unit assisting other agencies, including the Australian Transport Safety Bureau, as investigations continue,” a statement read.
Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll said that the plane was in a difficult position for rescuers to reach, noting that the drying mangrove is expected to make the retrieval of the crashed aircraft quite difficult.
“The plane is in a very, very difficult position in the wetland area and we currently have police and divers travelling to that area,” she said.
It was reported that the plane went down near Redcliffe, off the coast of the Kippa-Ring Conservation Reserve.
Emergency teams said that it will be difficult to recover the wreckage due to its complicated location. Credit: Richard Walker.
While the crash was near Redcliffe Airport, the length of time the plane was in the air before the accident is still unknown.
Redcliffe Aero Club also refused to comment on whether Mr Watterson was a member of the club.
