Charges laid over Muriwai skydiving death, how the victims of the March 15 mosque attacks will be remembered today and what's going on with the construction crunch in the latest New Zealand Herald headlines. Video / NZ Herald
The aviation watchdog has filed criminal charges in connection with the death of a British skydiver who suffered a catastrophic mid-air collision before being blown more than 1km out to sea.
Sarah-Jane Bayram died on March 10 last year when a nine-person “speed star” formation jump in the skies overMuriwai Beach northwest of Auckland went horribly wrong.
A Herald on Sundayinvestigation after the accident revealed that Bayram, 43, had expressed concern about the wind conditions shortly before boarding the Skydive Auckland flight at Parakai, while two others declined to take part in the jump for similar reasons.
Senior parachutists said at the time they believed a rescue boat should have been on standby for the sunset beach jump, as they believed the contingency may have saved Bayram’s life.
The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) confirmed yesterday it had filed two charges against Skydive Auckland Ltd, and two against the company’s director, Tony Green.
The charges were laid under the Health and Safety at Work Act, and Civil Aviation Act.
The most serious charges carry a maximum fine of $1.5 million for a company or $300,000 for an individual.
It’s understood the matter will be set down for a first hearing in the North Shore District Court.
A close friend of Bayram’s told the Herald she was speechless after learning of the charges.
“I feel sick. I feel a bit relieved. I feel really grateful.”
She said she hoped the tragedy resulted in meaningful change.
Green said he only learned of the charges from a Herald email yesterday afternoon.
“You’ve got more information than me.”
He said he was disappointed that after a year of working closely with CAA and providing every possible piece of information, “to date I don’t even know how Sarah-Jane died”.
“It’s been a one-way street of information and not a shred of information has been given our way about what really happened.
“It’s disappointing that a year later there’s a skydiving community that wants information but there’s none to give. If there were any improvements that could be made, they want to know about it, but the reality is it could be another year or two until they get it.”
Green said during discussions with CAA investigators, they’d acknowledged that no rules or regulations had been broken.
He said it was incumbent on the authority to share any information from the accident that could help save lives.
“It’s meant to be a safety authority that is there to improve safety, but that’s not happening.”
Rescuers who raced to Bayram’s aid on a jet ski after she was blown out to sea said she was purple, foaming from the nose and mouth, and appeared to have aspirated water as they performed CPR.
Bayram’s grieving father Andrew said last year that she loved the high-risk sport and often spoke of the spectacular views.
He was still “shell shocked” and just beginning to process her death.
“Each day blends into another. The more you think about it the more you remember.
“I suppose it could have been avoided, no doubt. We’ll just have to wait for things to take their course.”
Sarah-Jane Bayram, 43, was ticking off an adventure bucket list at the time of her death.
The death was the third in three years linked to the Parakai-based skydiving and training operation - all involving recent graduates of the New Zealand Skydiving School. Industry sources have claimed the trio of fatalities raised questions about safety and training standards.
After the Herald on Sunday’s coverage, the CAA launched an investigation into the skydiving industry in May last year, citing “concerning trends” that required “further investigation”.
The watchdog said it was “actively monitoring the sector” and promised to utilise all available regulatory tools, including prosecution.
Skydive Auckland CEO and director Tony Green says there is a "one-in-a-million chance of death" from parachuting.
The companies have defended their safety record. Green said last year there was only a “one in a million chance of death” from parachuting.
Though any accident was worrying and would be investigated, there was always an element of risk. He said the three fatalities all involved certified parachutists who were responsible for observing aviation safety rules.
Green expected skydiving operators would review protocols around beach landings and water jumps in light of the Muriwai tragedy.
But sources claimed standby rescue boats were best practice for descents into or near open water and common at some drop zones.
The three recent fatalities sparked concerns about whether thrill-seeking skydiving graduates were properly equipped to make split-second decisions during dangerous high-altitude jumps.
Irish national Jack Creane, 27, died in March 2019 after crashlanding at Parakai shortly after graduating from the skydiving school.
Theo Williams, 21, died in March 2021 after a hard landing in Tauranga. He had trained at Parakai and recently graduated.
And Bayram died in March last year. The young man involved in the collision with her at more than 200km/h was also a recent graduate.
A seasoned parachutist said in his opinion some people on Bayram’s plane were “relatively novice”.
Though video of the incident had been secured by police, the source understood the man involved in the collision had been trying to reach the formation at high speed when the impact occurred.
Another skydiver with years of experience said training was critical in the high-risk sport.
“It’s an environment that does not bode well if you make mistakes.”
