Accident
Captain Clarrie R. Hibbert, Acting Regional Director of Papua-New Guinea, was piloting a departmental Drover three-engine aircraft from Wewak to Momote. While cruising approximately 90 nautical miles from the destination, a portion of a propeller blade on the port engine detached and penetrated the cockpit. The fragment struck the pilot, rendering him unconscious and causing a severe injury to his left foot.
A passenger reacted quickly, pulling the incapacitated pilot from the seat and taking control of the aircraft. He managed to level the descent and perform a controlled ditching onto the sea. With the help of the other passenger, he then moved the pilot into a rubber dinghy.
Rescue
The survivors deployed a 'Gibson Girl' emergency beacon from the dinghy. The signal was picked up by a Qantas DC-3 aircraft, which then directed a Royal Australian Air Force crash launch to the location. The rescue vessel reached the men after they had been adrift for ten hours. The Drover sank in deep water and was a total loss.
The official investigation determined that the probable cause was the loss of a propeller blade in flight.