Young Girl Among Six Dead in Seaplane Crash in Australia

Young Girl Among Six Dead in Seaplane Crash in Australia
Visitors at the entrance to the Sydney Seaplanes terminal in Rose Bay, Sydney, on Jan. 1, 2018. Six people were killed when one of the company’s seaplane crashed into a river on New Year's Eve. (Peter Parks/AFP/Getty Images)
12/31/2017
Updated:
1/1/2018

Police have confirmed that five British nationals on holidays in Australia have been killed in a seaplane crash along with the pilot on New Year’s Eve.

An 11-year-old girl was the youngest among the fatalities. The crash occurred mid-afternoon on Sunday, Dec. 31 during what would have been a 20 minute return flight to Rose Bay in the iconic Sydney Harbour. The passengers had just finished having lunch at a restaurant on the Hawkesbury River in Sydney’s north.

The victims of the crash were 44-year-old pilot, Gareth Morgan, and family-to-be – Heather Bowden, 11, Emma Bowden, 48, her fiancé Richard Cousins, 58, and his two sons, Edward Cousins, 23, and William Cousins, 25, reported the ABC. Richard Cousins was the chief executive of catering giant Compass and was planning to step down from his post in the new year, reported The Telegraph.

The seaplane was a joy flight for the British tourists from the Sydney Seaplanes charter company which has been in operation since 2005.

The bodies were recovered on Sunday. The plane’s wreckage on Monday remained submerged in about 13 meters (42 feet) of water.

Mark Hutchings, Commander of the Marine Area Command NSW Police, told the ABC that the passengers of the joy flight were on holiday in Australia and the accident was “nothing more than just tragic”.

“We have in the course of this investigation, already been in contact with the UK,'' Hutchings said.

Myles Baptiste, an eyewitness, saw the seaplane make a sharp turn before hitting the water. “It made a tight right hand turn and as it actually turned around, the wings dipped and it nosedived straight into the water,” Baptiste told 9 NEWS.

The seaplane reportedly sank very quickly.

Sydney Seaplanes have had suspended their operations until further notice. The company’s managing director Aaron Shaw said they are “deeply shocked.” The pilot, Gareth, was an employee of Sydney Seaplanes.

“We wish to pass on our heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of the passengers and pilot who were tragically killed,” Shaw said in a statement.

“We do not yet know the cause of the accident.”

From NTD.tv

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