The pilot, who was the sole occupant of the Cessna 210, was
departing Lake Evella on a positioning flight to Elcho Island.
Witnesses reported seeing the aircraft takeoff and climb to about
400 ft above ground level. The aircraft then entered what was
described as a `wing-over type manoeuvre' before descending steeply
into the ground.
It was reported that, before the flight, the pilot had indicated
his intention to conduct a low pass over the runway after takeoff.
It was also reported that the pilot had occasionally conducted low
passes on arrival and departure at the airstrip.
New evidence presented to the ATSB on 16 October 2003 revealed
that the aircraft impacted the ground in a 30 degree nose-low
attitude, with the engine operating at low power. The evidence
indicated that an engineering examination found no evidence of any
pre-existing system malfunction which would contribute to a loss of
engine power. At the time of impact the propeller blade angles were
close to the fine pitch stop. The examination concluded that the
engine, propeller and their associated systems were not a factor in
the accident.
The aircraft was considered to have stalled and briefly
auto-rotated, during which the nose dropped into a steep nose-low
attitude. To the untrained observer that may have looked like a
wing-over type manoeuvre. During the attempted recovery, the pilot
may have closed the throttle to reduce acceleration and height
loss. The height at which the stall occurred was about 400 ft and
calculations suggest that the time to ground impact was about 4 to
5 seconds and the speed at impact about 100 to 120 kts.
Witnesses reported that the engine was operating at high power
until impact, indicating that the engine noise ceased about the
time of impact. The new evidence presented to the ATSB indicates
that the witnesses who reported hearing the engine noise were about
1000 metres from the aircraft and any change in engine noise would
have taken about 3 seconds to reach them. That would indicate that
the pilot may have closed the throttle soon after the aircraft
entered the dive.
The circumstances of the accident were consistent with the pilot
attempting a manoeuvre after takeoff, which inadvertently stalled
the aircraft at a low height. Control of the aircraft was then lost
with insufficient height remaining to effect recovery.
The ATSB did not conduct an on-site investigation into this
occurrence. This report has been compiled from information provided
to the Bureau.