NASSAU, Bahamas CMC – The Aircraft Accident Investigation Authority (AAIA) says low visibility due to weather conditions may have played a role in the deadly crash of a a Piper Aztec aircraft last Thursday, killing two of the people on board.
“Based on weather reports received, air traffic control audio recordings, radar data, and other witness accounts, it would appear that the weather conditions in and around the San Andros Airport at the time of the aircraft’s approach would have been less than the prescribed minimum for visual flying. Any operation in such conditions would require an appropriate instrument rating,” the AAIA said in a statement on Tuesday.
The AAIA said that “unable to maintain altitude, the pilot ditched the aircraft in waters approximately eight miles west of Nassau.
It said search and rescue personnel were immediately notified with coordinated response by the Royal Bahamas Defence Force (RBDF), Royal Bahamas Police Force (RBPF) and the United States Coast Guard (USCG).
The Piper Aztec aircraft was enroute to the Lynden Pindling International Airpor(LPIA) with six people on board.
One of the victims has been identified as Emma Williams who was on her way to her mother’s funeral in Lowe Sound, on the island of Andros, while the second crash victim, Allen Russell, believed to be in his 80s, was a local taxi driver in Andros.
The Tribune newspaper reported this week that questions have arisen over whether the pilot of the plane was fully licenced to carry fee-paying passengers.
The newspaper said documents obtained from the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) airman’s registry, which is current to August 23, 2024, showed that the pilot was licenced as a private pilot and that there’s nothing to show he has a commercial pilot’s licence.
