Youth dies after three-hour air drama

Press, 27 November 1979, Page 1

Youth dies after three-hour air drama

PA Invercargill A youth, aged 15, fell to his death yesterday morning after a 3|-hour flight over Southland in a stolen aeroplane that ultimately crashed on a remote Haldane farm, near Tokanui, in southern Southland.

It is believed the youth jumped out of the doorless aircraft before it hit the ground. The body was found about 270 metres from the remains of the aircraft.

The dead youth was identified last evening as Kenneth Allan McMillan, aged 15, of Duncraig Street, Invercargill. It is believed he had no flying experience.

An inquest will be held into his death. Eye-witness accounts from persons in a spotter plane which had the aircraft under observation

for about the last half-hour of the flight said they had hoped the presence of another plane would encourage the youth to land. The plane was a homebuilt Champion E7C highwinged monoplane, owned by the Southland Sports Flying Group, a syndicate of nine Invercargill people.

It was taken from a hangar used by Stewart Island Air Services, probably about 3.30 a.m. It is thought the youth forced the hangar door, shifted an Aztec plane out of the hangar, and then took the Champion aircraft. He unhinged the door of the plane, and took off in it.

Both the Invercargill police and the chief flying istructor of the Southland Aero Club (Mrs Jenny Frame) became

aware of the plane’s flight about the same time. Mrs Frame was in bed at her Otatara home when she was awakened by her husband and decided to investigate. She thought the plane may have been in difficulties and so went to the airport and turned on the runway lights. At 4 a.m. the police were told that an aircraft with its lights on was circling Invercargill Airport.

The aircraft continued to circle over the city for about two hours.

Attempts were made by air traffic control to talk to the pilot over the radio, but the messages were not acknowledged. At 6 a.m. Mrs Frame, a security officer and two police constables took off in a spotter aircraft hop-

ing to persuade the pilot to land.

However, as they took off the stolen aircraft climbed to about 1500 metres and headed eastwards towards Gore. The spotter plane followed but failed to sight the Champion. Mrs Frame was returning to Invercargill when the Invercargill Weather Office advised her that they had picked up a small finding somewhere in the Tokanui area.

The plane was located at 7 a.m. Attempts were made to make radio contact with the pilot, but he did not return their messages.

About 20 minutes later the plane gained some altitude and then started spiralling towards the ground. The right wing of the plane touched the

ground, and it flipped over.

The plane crashed on the property of Mr J. P. Casey, between Haldane and Otara. It came down on a hilly paddock surrounded by native bush Later, searchers found the body of the youth about 270 m from the wreckage.

The Inspector of Air Accidents (Mr R. Chippendale) visited the crash site yesterday afternoon.

Constable L. Peacock and Constable P. O’Brien were in the spotter plane and when they sighted the Champion it was flying up and down and around a paddock. “It was so low it was clipping the trees,” they said. “It was low all the time. It was flying very close to the ground.” Mrs Frame later said they had decided to follow

the plane hoping to persuade the pilot to return to Invercargill and land. “We lit a few flares and he came back for a look, but still showed no sign of landing,” she said. “I didn’t know what he was going to do next. One thing I took comfort in was that our plane was faster, should he attempt to run us down.

“I guessed I knew he intended to kill himself,” she said.

“He must have gone up intending to jump. He took the door off before he left the airport,” Mrs Frame said.

"At first I thought he might have just been out for a bit of a fly, but when he was still up there two hours later, I started to wonder.”