Poor maintenance caused crash, says ATSB
AIR crash investigators say a plane which crashed west of Brisbane nearly five years ago had been poorly maintained.
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) said the Eastland Air Beech Aircraft Corporation King Air C90's engine cut out shortly after takeoff from Toowoomba airport on November 27, 2001.
The chartered plane speared into powerlines and crashed into an industrial estate, bursting into flames.
Killed were pilot Bruce Johnson and Queensland Health employees Dr Allen Hughes, Dr Katherine Thompson and psychologist Alan Duckett.
The three were a mental health outreach team travelling from Toowoomba to the southern border town of Goondiwindi on a regular trip.
In 2004, an ATSB report found the plane's left engine had cut out shortly after take-off but the investigation was reopened last year after new information was presented at an inquiry.
“The factors which contributed to this accident were primarily maintenance-related,” the ATSB said today.
It said the problem had existed in the left engine for months prior to the accident.
“For a variety of reasons, that evidence was not detected and analysed, nor was appropriate remedial action initiated,” the ATSB said.
“Without timely intervention to address the developing engine problem, it was increasingly probable that the aircraft would have an in-flight emergency involving the left engine.”
The ATSB also acknowledged the crash may also have been caused by a fault in the power turbine.
It issued six recommendations, including mandatory turbine engine condition monitoring programs and surveillance of the programs.
The Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) has made changes to the turbine monitoring programs and to the processes for assessing the suitability of maintenance controllers.
Eastland Air is no longer operating.
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