Accident Flight
On the morning of 5 March 1999, a private helicopter flight departed from Wonderboom Airport near Pretoria. The pilot, accompanied by his wife and father, flew to Port Alfred, with interim landings at Tempe Aerodrome near Bloemfontein and East London Aerodrome for refueling. On the afternoon of 6 March 1999, the helicopter departed Port Alfred and landed at Port Elizabeth Aerodrome (FAPE), where 149 litres of Jet A1 fuel were added to capacity. Shortly thereafter, the flight departed en route to Hildesheim Guest House near Hoekwil in the Wilderness area.
The flight was conducted under visual flight rules (VFR) and no flight plan was filed. The helicopter was certified for day or night VFR operations in non-icing conditions. Onboard were two GPS units, one with a moving map display; no Emergency Locator Transmitter was installed.
Search and Discovery
The helicopter was reported missing after the intended meet at Cape Town International Airport on 7 March 1999 did not occur. The Aviation Rescue Co-ordination Centre (ARCC) in Johannesburg was alerted on 7 March at 1645Z, and a distress phase (DETRESFA) was declared at 1904Z. An extensive aerial, ground, and sea search was conducted but terminated without success on 15 March 1999. A private search by family members continued until 13 April 1999.
The wreckage was located on 21 April 2006 by a forest worker preparing cut lines for harvesting indigenous trees in Diepwalle Forest, Knysna (GPS: 33°58.174'S, 023°10.591'E, elevation approximately 920 feet AMSL). The three occupants sustained fatal injuries. With the discovery, the accident investigation was reopened.
Meteorological Conditions
At the accident site, the reported surface wind was 120° at 17 to 27 knots, temperature 22°C, and broken cloud at 600 feet.
Probable Cause
It would appear that the pilot attempted to remain visual with reference to the ground (VFR) underneath cloud, and in doing so had to descend and was most probably left with no other option but to penetrate obscured weather conditions, and in doing so collided with terrain/trees.