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Jindabyne incident ends well


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Well done that lad!

 

Well done that that lad's instructor(s)!

 

From the ABC News site this morning.

 

Teenage pilot makes emergency landing in NSW Snowy Mountains, walks away unharmed

 

Posted 50 minutes ago

 

MAP: Khancoban 2642

 

A 16-year-old pilot has walked away unharmed after making an emergency landing in the New South Wales Snowy Mountains.

 

NSW Police said the teenager, who was on his fourth solo flight, took off from the Jindabyne airport yesterday and the alarm was raised when he did not return as scheduled.

 

The region's rescue helicopter was called in to help search for the boy, who was found just before 7:00pm.

 

The single-engine, two-seater Jabiru was resting in a paddock near Khancoban on the western side of the mountains.

 

Police said low light and fog prevented the boy, a student of the Jindabyne Aero Club, from returning to Jindabyne, so he made an emergency landing and walked to a nearby property to raise the alarm.

 

An instructor from the club went out to collect him after the incident.

 

Officers from the Albury Local Area Command are investigating the cause of the incident and the Australian Transport Safety Bureau has also been notified.

 

The plane had some minor damage.

 

ACT Emergency Services Agency acting commissioner David Foot said it was "a good news story which had an alarming start".

 

"We had a report of an aircraft overdue between Dalgety and Jindabyne just after 5:00pm," he said.

 

"Snowy Hydro Southcare went up to commence search preparations and the aircraft and pilot were located safe and well."

 

 

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Fourth solo flight, 16 years old, flying in the mountains (read changing weather patterns, winds etc). Full credit to the young fella, he has grown heaps in the last 24 hours, a credit to his instructors who have instilled the skills and confidence to deal with the situation prior to granting him the freedom to fly solo. Guaranteed that this young flyer will pay careful attention to all the meteorology learning in gaining his XC endo. I also reckon this will help make him a better driver when he is old enough to get a drivers licence.

 

I hope the "minor damage" is easily fixed and he goes on to have a long and safe flying life.

 

 

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good move to know when you are better off on the ground.

 

I do wonder though if the ABC is reporting things correctly. Overdue between Dalgete and Jindabyne, yet lands in Khancoban.. The flight path doesn't seem to stack up.

 

 

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good move to know when you are better off on the ground.I do wonder though if the ABC is reporting things correctly. Overdue between Dalgete and Jindabyne, yet lands in Khancoban.. The flight path doesn't seem to stack up.

Certainly asks more questions than it answers. I do commend the young fellow on getting himself safely on the ground no matter where it was or should have been.

 

 

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Four hours after first going solo, many student pilots would not yet have been introduced to a precautionary search and landing (unless maybe only in theory by reading text book). Lucky to have done much more than circuits. Even if they have had a lesson on it, they have not yet practiced or been rated as competent. Had the young fella not made the right call to land when he did, pushed on into bad weather, got lost and panicked or misjudged his landing in an unfamiliar (off airfield) environment, we would all be bowing our heads with shock and despair. The young fella has probably only ever landed on the one runway (how many had any of us used before our fifth hour solo?), he would not yet have his certificate and would not have commenced any XC training. His cool handling of the situation avoided the very bad alternative.

 

I for one read the news story, very quickly saw the word "Jabiru" and thought "oh god, not another one". I am very pleased to hear that this all worked out the way it did. Perhaps there was an alternative a more experienced pilot would have taken but for a very inexperienced flyer, put in the difficult situation he did well.

 

As far as ending up in Khancoban, en-route from Dalgety to Jindabyne, this I cant explain. Unless he became lost avoiding weather, maintained his heading, luckily had visibility to climb over our highest mountains (8000' LSALT) and knowing that Khancoban has an airfield tried to get there. It must have been a very frightening experience. We don't know exactly what he was dealing with, what else he tried or considered (radio assistance - still a student, instructor should have been available, what was weather to the North like to try for Cooma or Polo Flat?) the possibilities for this to have been a tragedy were huge. No doubt his instructors and RA Aus need provide the necessary de-brief, counselling, training, and actions to learn from this experience.

 

 

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Just wondering:Would that landing/situation warranted use of the ELB?

 

Why would he have needed to walk to the house and used a mobile phone?

 

Hey, just asking.

Depends how far it was to the house.

I wonder how far I would elect to walk before I decided that the use of the PLB was warranted? It is a big cost to a lot of people once the button is pushed whereas a walk of a kilometre or so if well and able would save a lot of wasted expense. If it was to take you too long it could also be expensive as the emergency services could be wasting effort in the wrong location.

 

 

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Just wondering:Would that landing/situation warranted use of the ELB?

 

Why would he have needed to walk to the house and used a mobile phone?

 

Hey, just asking.

My understanding is that an ELB is only for a life-threatening emergency, if you can walk to a farmhouse and call the authorities, then that is what you should do rather than initiating a costly deployment aircraft and personnel.

 

 

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Interesting how some still jump on the make Jabiru. There has been 14 RAA crashes, 9 fatalities, in 2015 (that I know of alone) none of which has been related to an unservicability in Jabiru, bit like a cracked record.

 

Facts would suggest attention should be directed to this area, but I am quite confident this will not change, at least here anyway.

 

 

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Ok, ELB out.

 

Mobile phone?

 

The time line on the news seemed a bit ....... long.

 

Ok, the landing, etc. No worries.

 

(Nothing against the poster but:)

 

The region's rescue helicopter was called in to help search for the boy, who was found just before 7:00pm

 

What exactly does that statement mean?

 

He was on a flight. XC?

 

"We had a report of an aircraft overdue between Dalgety and Jindabyne just after 5:00pm," he said.

 

His departure time would not have been that close to "EOD" (sunset/EndOfDaylight)

 

So he got lost, landed etc. And it took until 19:00 (or "just before") before he was FOUND?

 

He would have got to the house and called WAY BEFORE 17:00, so why was the helicopter called?

 

Ok, maybe just the wording, but...... Is there a problem with THE SEQUENCE OF things happened after the landing?

 

 

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I presume as he was doing a solo X country, he was trained for it. There is an issue as to the suitability of that area if there is any doubt about the weather for inexperienced operators. It can catch out anybody at times. Nev

 

 

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For what it's worth, firstly well done to this young man for taking the ultimate action that he did, in any event (for the knockers) a good thing he was in a jabiru, despite the nose wheel a very strong airframe indeed...

 

 

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Nev, I am not arguing with that.

 

But!

 

Speculating on the events:

 

Ok, Solo XC. No problems. Departed ...... 09:00?

 

He gets caught by the weather. No problems.

 

"Diverts" to Khancoban. Ok, landing not the best. Time? 13:00?

 

Now, in THIS time line that if FOUR HOURS later - very generous for times.

 

He walks to the house and calls. What that would be about 14:00 at the latest?? 1 hour walk to the house?

 

He calls. "Oops, got stuck....... " etc etc etc.

 

WHY WAS THE RESCUE HELICOPTER BROUGHT INTO THE EQUATION?

 

He had rung and was at a known location and the situation was told.

 

There is a HUGE HOLE in the explanation of what happened and what happened there after and WHY.

 

 

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Folks it's a media article. they are professional fabulists - only lawyers can outdo them for straight out lies, fabrication and sensationalism. And of course ignorance. As a rule when following the media is always allow for the exact opposite being potentially the truth.

 

The best we can hope to believe at this point is an incident did happen in the area which involved one person who is OK.

 

 

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Couldn't give a rats about all the why this, and who that, and what about etc. HE IS ONLY 16 ON ONLY HIS 4th SOLO. He did better than anyone I know at that stage of their flying career and deserves a medal not an inquisition, plus he was flying a great Australian product.

 

 

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