Apparently Hit Yoke, Sending Plane Into Spiral

Officials with Israel's Civil Aviation Authority say they're fairly certain they know why a Cessna 172 crashed last month in the Sharon region, killing all four persons onboard... and, like with so many accidents, it could have been avoided.

According to YNet News, a report issued on the October 22 accident states one of the passengers tried to move from the right seat of the 172, to a seat in the rear. As he tried to change position, he apparently hit the control yoke... setting off a disastrous chain of events.

"The investigation found that during the flight back to the Herzliya airfield, the passenger seated next to the pilot moved towards the back seat, inadvertently causing the plane's nose to go up," reads the CAA report. "To compensate, the pilot pushed the steering rod forward, resulting in the passenger either tripping onto or accidentally shifting the right rod down."

The aircraft entered a steep spiral to the right from approximately 1,000 feet AGL. The CAA says the female pilot -- identified as Eliav Arbel -- had little to no hope of regaining control.

Also killed in the crash were passengers Menachem Ben Zecharia, and brothers Aviram and Itay Pasternak. The report does not state which man was in the right seat.

FMI: www.mot.gov.il/wps/portal/HOME/EN_CAA