What happened
During a night operation involving a sequence of six departing aircraft, the second plane in the flight stream departed from the Tangalooma Resort strip toward Coolangatta aerodrome. While the initial takeoff roll proceeded without apparent issue, witnesses—including several pilots on standby—noted that the aircraft maintained a shallow climb. At an altitude of approximately 150 feet, the aircraft began a descent that lasted until it struck the ground 164 meters past the end of the runway.
Upon impact, the nose landing gear failed, though the aircraft stayed upright and slid along the terrain on its main gear and forward fuselage. The aircraft then crossed a low sand dune, dropped 10 feet onto the beach, and eventually overturned. A fire fueled by onboard fuel ignited during the accident. Despite the flames, all four passengers successfully exited the aircraft, and the pilot was also rescued by the passengers.
Findings
Observations from the scene indicated that the aircraft's initial climb was shallow before the descent began, leading to the ground impact and subsequent rollover.