Two Lost In Apparent In-flight Breakup

A BAC 167 Strikemaster, flown by private Australian company Jet Fighter Flights, evidently broke apart in mid-air on Thursday, killing the pilot and his passenger.

Authorities believe the owner of Jet Fighter Flights, Nick Costin, was the pilot of the vintage warbird. His passenger, Shane O'Donoghue, was on a joyflight given as a 50th birthday present by his wife and children.

The flight would have included military style briefings and simulated bomb-runs. The family was at the airport when the aircraft was reported missing, according to the Syndey Morning Herald.

Authorites say Costin, an ex-Royal Air Force (RAF) and experienced aerobatic pilot, may have been performing a low-level maneuver when part of the tail broke off. Sections of the tail were found almost a kilometer from the wreckage, which burst into flames upon impact, sparking a brushfire, reported the Daily Telegraph.

The Strikemaster's predecessor, the Jet Provost, was first used by the RAF in 1953 as a basic jet trainer. The plane was updated as a fighter-bomber and used by dozens of nations in the 50's and 60's. Costin's company is believed to own three of the jets, according to The Age of Australia. The planes were acquired from New Zealand and Singapore. The New Zealand Air Force struck the planes from its roster when fatigue cracks were found in the wings.

Australia's Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) confirmed the aircraft was originally fitted with ejection seats, but they were disarmed on the Strikemaster, mainly due to safety and liability issues relating to the explosive charges used in the system.

A CASA spokesman, quoted in The Age said: "The rules require the passenger to actually sign a legal waiver to recognize the uniqueness of the aircraft, that it's an ex-military aircraft manufactured and maintained to military standards not to civilian standards operated outside normal civilian aviation environment."

"Maintenance standards are different, whether they are higher or lower is a bit harder to say but they're certainly not the same as civilian standards and if we applied the normal civilian commercial standards to these aircraft, they wouldn't be operating, because of the uniqueness of the types of aircraft ex-military the two regimes aren't compatible," the spokesman added.

Thursday's accident was the second involving a vintage warbird in as many weeks. As ANN reported, a private L-29 warbird went down in Capetown, South Africa September 22.

FMI: www.casa.gov.au/