Maritime And Safety Authority Hands Case Over To Northern
Territory Police
A plane operated by Mission Aviation Fellowship left Elcho
Island in Australia's Northern Territory on Thursday morning and
raised concern when it failed to reach its destination. Some debris
from the aircraft has been found, but the pilot and most of the
plane's wreckage remain missing despite an intense search by sea
and air.
Australian Search and Rescue spokesman Mick Spinks said wreckage
from a Gippsland GA8 Airvan freight plane -- a plane wheel, a seat
cushion and jerry cans - was found in Buckingham Bay about 20km
south-east of Elcho Island, 540km east of Darwin, according to
Australian Associated Press reports.
"A search this morning (Saturday) identified no further
wreckage," Spinks said, "and based on the advice of medical experts
and the aircraft manufacturer it was decided to hand over the
search to the Northern Territory Police," who have asked shipping
and regular flights in the area to keep a lookout for any
indication of what happened to the pilot and his plane.
The search began when 23-year-old pilot Hadleigh Smith did not
arrive at Mata Mata in his Airvan (type shown below) by 2:30 pm on
Thursday. Mission Aviation Fellowship Australia chief executive Rob
Owen said Smith's family and the community were holding out hope he
would be found.
"We're still searching for the airplane and for Hadleigh," he
said. "There's nothing definite to say what's happened - that's one
of the difficulties, and the realization that it may well be not
the outcome we've been hoping for is difficult."
Owen said Smith's father traveled from his home in Sydney to
Nhulunbuy last night to be closer to the search effort. "Hearing
that the airplane probably hit the water with some force has hit
him pretty hard. The hope may have lessened a bit, but the reality
is that we just don't know what happened."
The Mission Aviation team is working through the incident, Owen
said. "There is some anxiety among the MA fraternity around the
world. Our people are really on the front line - there are
gatherings of local families and staff to help try to work them
through the process. But we'll continue to search until it seems
it's no longer worthwhile."
With a 60-year history of global humanitarian operations, MAF
operates "the world's largest fleet of private aircraft used for
the public good," according to the organization's website. "Today,
nearly 800 Christian and humanitarian organizations depend on
Mission Aviation Fellowship to help them accomplish their work.
"In 2007, the MAF fleet of 53 aircraft executed 37,821 flights,
2.9 million miles, transported 129,350 passengers, and delivered
11.3 million pounds of cargo-all on 1,700 rough, unimproved dirt
and grass airstrips as well as waterways."
Manufactured by Gippsland Aeronautics of Victoria, Australia,
the GA8 Airvan features seats for eight, a 310 hp Lycoming
I0-540-K1A5 engine and boasts an 1,800 pound useful load.
Designed to fill the gap between the Cessna 206 and Cessna
Caravan, the GA8 Airvan is used in numerous roles, such as
humanitarian relief, passenger service, freight, sightseeing,
parachuting, observation, and search & rescue.