Aircraft Crash Near Carolina Airport Due to Navigation Error (ZS-AVI)

Incident Overview During a flight from Livingston to Jo'burg-Palmietfontein Airport, the crew encountered poor weather conditions. The pilot-in-command lost orientation in low visibility and decided to divert to Carolina Airport. On final approach, the aircraft was too low and struck a rock, crashing 2 km short of the runway. All 19 occupants evacuated safely, while the aircraft was damaged beyond repair. ## Official Findings The primary cause was faulty navigation by the captain, who set off on an incorrect course and made incorrect visual identifications of towns based on assumptions. A check of the assumed ground speed between Mahalapye and Warmbaths would have revealed an impossible speed of approximately 318 mph, which would have alerted him. The secondary cause was the failure of responsible parties to alert Pietersburg Aeradio Station and Beacon, compounded by excessive radio interference on the Rand on the evening of 15 September due to electrical storms. The tertiary cause was an attempted landing on an unidentified and unlighted aerodrome of unknown altitude. During a low approach, the aircraft's wheels struck a rock outcrop approximately 1-1/4 miles from the airfield.