2025 Swan River Seaplanes Cessna 208 crash

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2025 Swan River Seaplanes Cessna 208 crash
Cessna 208 Caravan VH-WTY at the Whitsunday Airport at Shute Harbour on 20191220.jpg
VH-WTY, the aircraft involved in the accident in 2019
Accident
Date7 January 2025 (2025-01-07)
SummaryCrashed during takeoff, under investigation
Site Rottnest Island, Western Australia, Australia
31°59′58.1″S115°33′39.9″E / 31.999472°S 115.561083°E / -31.999472; 115.561083
Aircraft
Aircraft type Cessna 208 Caravan 675 seaplane
OperatorSwan River Seaplanes
Registration VH-WTY
Flight origin Rottnest Island, Western Australia, Australia
Destination South Perth, Western Australia, Australia
Occupants7
Passengers6
Crew1
Fatalities3
Injuries3
Survivors4

On 7 January 2025, a Swan River Seaplanes Cessna 208 Caravan 675 seaplane with seven people onboard returning to its base in South Perth, Western Australia, 19 miles (30 kilometers) east of Rottnest Island crashed during takeoff from Thomson Bay, Rottnest Island, Western Australia. The plane impacted the water with its front section, and the pilot and two passengers were killed. Three other passengers survived with injuries and the one remaining passenger was uninjured. [1] [2] [3]

Contents

Background

Aircraft

Thomson Bay on Rottnest Island, where the accident occurred Thomson Bay 2.jpg
Thomson Bay on Rottnest Island, where the accident occurred

The aircraft involved in the accident was a nine year old Cessna 208 Caravan 675 seaplane operated by Swan River Seaplanes. Prior to the accident, the aircraft crashed in 2016, injuring 11 people. [4] The aircraft was ferried to Western Australia from the Australian east coat just seven days before the accident. [5]

Passengers and crew

There were seven people on board the aircraft, six passengers and the pilot. The passengers were all tourists, two each from Switzerland, Denmark and Australia. The pilot was a 34-year-old Australian. The three fatalities were the pilot and two tourists, one Swiss and one Danish. [6] [7]

Accident

The aircraft crashed on takeoff from Thomson Bay in Rottnest Island at around 4:00 p.m. WAST. It was supposed to fly to South Perth. Videos of the accident show the aircraft struggling to gain altitude and banking to the left during takeoff and then hit the water with its left wing than submerging 8 metres (26 ft) deep. There are unconfirmed reports that the plane hit an underwater rock at the entrance of the bay during takeoff, causing the crash. [8] [9] [3]

After the crash, the survivors were rescued, and the 3 injured people in the crash were flown to a Perth hospital. [3] As of January 9, 2025, one of the injured victims was discharged from the hospital.

Investigation

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) started an investigation on the accident to determine the cause and dispatched teams to the crash site. Rescue parties included civilian boats, police boats, rangers, helicopters and doctors from the Royal Flying Doctor Service. The aircraft's wreckage was pulled out of the water on the afternoon of January 7, and it will be taken to Perth for further investigation, and then transferred to a laboratory in Canberra. [10] The investigators are also searching for electronic devices that were onboard the aircraft that could provide clues about the accident. [11]

Aftermath

Swan River Seaplanes, the company operating the aircraft, said that they were "heartbroken" and "devastated" by the crash, and that they sent their condolences to the families of the victims. [12] The Australian prime minister, Anthony Albanese expressed his deep sorrow for the crash and also sent condolences, as did the Western Australian premier Roger Cook. [13]

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The Cessna 208 Caravan is a utility aircraft produced by Cessna. The project was commenced on November 20, 1981, and the prototype first flew on December 9, 1982. The production model was certified by the FAA in October 1984 and its Cargomaster freighter variant was developed for FedEx. The 4 ft (1.2 m) longer 208B Super Cargomaster first flew in 1986 and was developed into the passenger 208B Grand Caravan.

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References

  1. "Accident Cessna 208 Caravan 675 VH-WTY, Tuesday 7 January 2025, 3 dead" . Retrieved 9 January 2025.
  2. "Light aircraft crashes at tourist hotspot in Australia, killing 3" . Retrieved 9 January 2025.
  3. 1 2 3 "A seaplane crashes off Australia's Rottnest Island, killing 2 tourists and the pilot". CNN. 9 January 2025. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
  4. "Crash of a Cessna 208 Caravan I in Whitsunday Island". Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives. 28 January 2016. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
  5. "Pilot and 2 passengers killed in WA seaplane crash" . Retrieved 9 January 2025.
  6. "Australia's Rottnest Island plane crash: Swiss, Danish tourists among three dead". Reuters . Retrieved 9 January 2025.
  7. "In Australia tre persone sono morte nello schianto di un piccolo aereo vicino all'isola di Rottnest, una località turistica". 8 January 2025. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
  8. "Swiss and Danish nationals among three dead in seaplane crash off Australian tourist island". Independent.co.uk . Retrieved 9 January 2025.
  9. "A seaplane crashes off an Australian tourist island, killing 3 and injuring 3 others". Associated Press News . 8 January 2025. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
  10. "Wreckage recovered as ATSB investigators piece together moments before Rottnest seaplane crash". ABC News. 9 January 2025. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
  11. "Rottnest Island seaplane crash investigators to scour electronic devices for clues from flight's final seconds". The Guardian. 9 January 2025. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
  12. "'Heartbroken': Seaplane owner speaks after 'devastating' Rottnest Island crash" . Retrieved 9 January 2025.
  13. "Three People Died in Seaplane Crash Off Rottnest Island, Australia". 8 January 2025. Retrieved 9 January 2025.