Lucky escape for 2 men after golf course Cherokee crash

As reported by The Sydney Morning Herald, the plane was being flown by a trainee pilot when it apparently suffered an engine failure, forcing it to land on the golf course. Both the pilot and co-pilot were taken to Royal North Shore Hospital, with one having suffered minor facial injuries.

“On arrival, crews were confronted with a light aircraft that had made an emergency landing after losing power. Both occupants, males in their 50s, had self-extricated. They had minor injuries and were transported to Royal North Shore Hospital in a stable condition,” NSW Ambulance Inspector Chris Peck told The Northern Beaches Advocate.

“Given the nature of the accident, both the pilot and the trainee pilot had only minor abrasions and were coherent and had full recollection of events. They were very lucky.

“It was a very quick response from ambulance as the nearest crew was only around the corner at Mona Vale. There were no bystander injuries, which is also lucky considering it’s a packed golf course on a Sunday afternoon.”

Eyewitness Keanu Turnewitsch told the ABC he had seen a “big shadow” passing overhead right before the crash landing.

“I thought, ‘It’s a big bird’ and looked up and there was an airplane close enough I could have thrown a club up and hit it,” he said.

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“It was dead silence. About 30 seconds later, we had a big crunching sound … then all the ambulances and everything started coming past and sirens for 20, 30 minutes.

“By the time we got back up around, there was an airplane on the golf course.”

VH-BUN is registered to a private owner who is understood to have leased it to a training school in Shellharbour according to media reports.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) has called for any witnesses with footage to make contact via its website.

“As part of the evidence-gathering phase of the investigation, ATSB transport safety investigators will interview the pilots, other involved parties and witnesses, and collect available recorded information, including footage and ADS-B flight tracking data, as well as weather information and pilot and aircraft maintenance records,” the safety watchdog said.

“Investigators may also seek to recover any relevant aircraft componentry from the aircraft for further examination at the ATSB’s technical facilities in Canberra.”