What happened
On the evening of 31 July 2007, a Rockwell International Aero Commander 500S, registered VH-YJB, departed Essendon Airport in Victoria for a business flight to Shepparton. The flight was being conducted at night under instrument flight rules (IFR) and carried two people: the pilot and one passenger.
While cruising at 7,000 feet above mean sea level within Class C controlled airspace, the aircraft disappeared from radar and radio contact. Air traffic control lost communication with the aircraft approximately 25 nautical miles north-north-east of Essendon. Following several failed attempts to re-establish contact, a distress phase was declared. By 20:03, the Melbourne Centre Operations Director classified the aircraft as likely lost and notified AusSAR.
Search operations involving helicopters, fixed-wing aircraft, and ground teams were initiated. Although no emergency locator transmitter signal was detected, search aircraft located wreckage in timbered ranges near Clonbinane, roughly 50 km north of Melbourne, at 21:47. Ground crews confirmed the wreckage belonged to VH-YJB and determined there were two fatalities.
Findings
Investigation of the site revealed that the aircraft sustained severe damage due to excessive in-flight aerodynamic forces and impact with the terrain. The aircraft had descended nearly vertically through the trees. Local residents reported hearing a brief, loud, and constant engine noise lasting only a few seconds, followed by an impact, though no eyewitnesses to the actual flight path were present.