Engine failure ruled out in plane crash

Investigators have ruled out engine failure as the cause of a Manawatu plane crash which left two pilots severely injured yesterday.

The two-seater Air Hawke's Bay Piper Tomahawk - a low-winged aircraft typically used for training - was on a commercial pilot's licence training flight from Hastings Airport when it crashed in steep terrain in the Ruahine Ranges, north of Palmerston North, about 1pm.

The 18-year-old trainee pilot and his instructor were taken to Palmerston North Hospital, but the 30-year-old instructor was transferred to Wellington Hospital overnight after his condition worsened.

He suffered head and leg injuries and underwent surgery today, and remained in a critical condition in intensive care, a Wellington Hospital spokeswoman said.

The trainee pilot suffered serious chest and leg injuries and underwent surgery at Palmerston North Hospital yesterday.

He was in a critical but stable condition tonight, a hospital spokesman said.

Civil Aviation inspectors began their investigation at the crash site today and were airlifted out of the area about 4.30pm, Civil Aviation Authority spokeswoman Emma Peel said.

They inspected the wreckage and had been able to discount engine failure as the cause of the crash, she said.

The investigators had also spoken to an eyewitness who saw the aircraft flying low in a valley area, which was supported by radar data, Ms Peel said.

The wreckage had been released to insurers, who would decide how to extract it from the Ruahine Ranges.

Square Trust Rescue Helicopter pilot Fergus MacLachlan said the trainee pilot managed to "belly" the plane into a hill, and it wedged between two trees, saving the pair from a more severe crash.

The pair were lucky to have been found by the helicopter crew only 20 minutes after the search was started, and that the helicopter was able to reach them in difficult, steep and tree-covered terrain, he said.

"They were pretty cold, there was snow up there... I definitely don't think they would have survived a night in that cold weather," Mr MacLachlan said.

- NZPA