By SANCHESKA BROWN

Tribune Staff Reporter

sbrown@tribunemedia.net

THE CRASH that killed two men last week in Bimini was caused after the pilot lost control of the aircraft while attempting to avoid hitting another plane that was taxiing on the runway, Civil Aviation officials revealed yesterday.

Delvin Major, lead investigator at the Department of Civil Aviation, told The Tribune that based on their investigations the Piper Aztec 27 did not crash because of engine failure, as was originally reported, but rather was caused “after the pilot turned too deep and as was unable to come out of a nose dive”.

Last Monday, Transport and Aviation Minister Glenys Hanna Martin said the small plane crash at the South Bimini Airport was likely to have been caused by engine failure.

She said preliminary investigations revealed the PA-27 plane experienced problems with its right engine moments after take off, forcing the pilot to turn around and head back to the South Bimini Airport.

Unfortunately, she said, the pilot “fell short of the runway”.

The victims were the pilot, Terrance “Tango” Gibson, and an airplane mechanic, Anthony Smith, nicknamed “Scrubby”.

Mr Major told The Tribune on Monday that the aircraft’s radios were “most likely not working” and the pilot would not have been warned about the other plane.

“We did our investigations and based on what we saw; the plane did not crash because of engine failure. They were returning to land because the plane was experiencing some problems. When they saw the plane, they attempted to go around the plane but lost control and crashed,” Mr Major said.

“From what we were told the radios in the aircraft were not working, so there was no way for them to hear the communication. If they had communication they would have been able to co-ordinate with the other aircraft and that plane would have most likely taxied off and given them the runway but because of the lack of communication the information was not transmitted.”

A witness to the crash who wished to remain anonymous said he saw the plane take a nosedive and was not able to “pull out of it”.

“They took off and then came back around dropping low to the runway but another plane was on the runway and the pilot panicked,” the witness said.

“The plane took a 40 degree turn, which is too much for an Aztec and so the plane stalled and went into a nosedive. I saw the plane: it was a Cherokee 6 and I don’t think the guys on the plane had a headset and they were not able to communicate.”

At 4.15pm on June 19, aviation officials at South Bimini Airport received a report of smoke in bushes near the airport. Officials previously reported that the crashed plane had departed Bimini’s airport minutes before the tragedy.

Last week, Mrs Hanna Martin said “there was no previous radio communication from the aircraft” before the crash.

“The crash and fire rescue team and the Civil Aviation Department along with the Royal Bahamas Police Force and other airport personnel immediately responded to the area in question and traversed along a dirt road until the area became impassable. The crash fire and rescue team, along with the equipment, continued through the thick bushes on foot and after an extensive trek, a fatal crash scene was discovered with two bodies. Ultimately, a tractor was used to effect a removal of the bodies,” she told Parliament last week.

The bodies were brought to the capital. Investigations continue.