What happened
A medical evacuation flight, operated for International SOS, was traveling to the Rooisand Desert Ranch Aerodrome to retrieve a patient following a motor vehicle accident. The single engine aircraft arrived at the Rooisand Airstrip approximately 15 minutes prior to sunset. Because the airfield lacked lighting infrastructure, the pilot requested that vehicles be parked along the runway with their headlights activated to provide visibility for the landing.
Following departure, the aircraft proceeded in a westbound direction, aided by a 12-knot tailwind. The intended flight path involved circling the runway several times to establish enough altitude to clear the surrounding terrain. However, the aircraft turned toward a hill situated 258 meters above the runway elevation. After traveling roughly 4.8 km toward this obstacle, the plane performed a steep left bank and redirected toward the southeast. During this maneuver, the aircraft descended to an altitude of 191 meters before impacting a slope. The wreckage was located 17 meters below the summit of the hill, and the crash resulted in four fatalities.
Findings
Investigations concluded that the accident was a case of controlled flight into terrain. Several contributing elements were identified:
- The decision to conduct takeoff operations from an airfield that lacked the necessary equipment for night flying.
- An increased workload for the pilot due to the absence of a co-pilot, which prevented assistance with terrain reconnaissance, flight preparation, and managing the medical passengers.
- Reduced visibility caused by nighttime conditions and a lack of ground reference points.
- The pilot's inability to clearly read instrument panel parameters because he was not wearing his corrective glasses.