What happened
On the afternoon of the accident, a twin-engine aircraft departed from Bankstown Airport at 15:28 local time, heading toward its base at Sydney-Mascot. The flight was carrying three people: the pilot, a stewardess, and a child passenger.
While approaching the Sydney area, the pilot elected to abort the mission to Sydney-Mascot and instead attempted to return to Bankstown Airport. Shortly after this decision, the pilot notified Air Traffic Control that an engine had failed and requested permission for a straight-in approach to the airfield. During the descent toward Bankstown, the aircraft became uncontrollable. The plane struck the ground in Padstow, located approximately 4.5 km southeast of the airport, and burst into flames.
Findings
The crash resulted in two fatalities and one injury. The stewardess died at the scene of the accident. The child passenger sustained minor injuries, while the pilot suffered serious injuries; however, the pilot later succumbed to his wounds several hours after the impact. Investigations concluded that the primary factor was an engine failure.