THE pilot and wingwalker have been praised for their actions following the conclusion of an investigation into events that led to their aircraft ditching in Poole Harbour.
The AeroSuperBatics bi-plane suffered an engine failure caused by a fault with an oil pipe during last year's Bournemouth Air Festival.
The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) published a report into the incident this week, 13 months after pilot David Barrell and wingwalker Kirsten Pobjoy suffered only minor injuries.
It revealed that in the space of just four minutes the crew went from first realising there was a problem to succesfully ditching off Sandbanks.
Mr Barrell had been told that he might be able to bring the plane down at Parkstone Golf Club, however, he ruled this out as people might be on the course.
He saw empty fields on Studland as a place to land but with the aircraft's condition worsening he swiftly changed approach and ditched in the water away from any boats.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the Cirencester-based wingwalker team said: "We welcome the publication of the report into the incident which led to one of our aircraft ditching in the entrance to Poole Harbour.
"Our highly trained crew followed a briefed procedure which led to no injuries on the ground, to the general public, or the crew onboard the aircraft.
"Bournemouth Air Festival is always a highlight of our airshow calendar and we look forward to displaying there every year.
"We’d like to extend our sincere thanks to everyone who has sent us messages of support."
The AAIB report details its summary of how the crew responsed to discovering there was a problem.
The AeroSuperBatics team began its display on Saturday, September 4, at 2.43pm and completed the first two manoeuvres.
Positioning for the next manoeuvre, both aircraft in the display flew away from the crowd line and, after increasing power, pilot Mr Barrell noticed that the aircraft was not climbing, and the rpm was lower than expected at around 1,800 rpm.
The report said: "As the engine was not delivering full power, the pilot turned to depart the display area to the west. He rocked the wings, which was the agreed signal to attract the attention of the wing walker and indicated by hand signal for her to dismount the wing.
"The wing walker dismounted, strapped into the front cockpit, and disconnected the wing walking safety restraint. The pilot reported on the display frequency that he had an engine problem and advised that he planned to return to Bournemouth Airport."
The pilot of the other wingwalker aircraft followed at a distance and instructed his wing walker to dismount but the engine of Mr Barrell's aircraft misfired will at around 600ft above the ground. He was cleared to make a route direct to any runway.
The AAIB report said: "While there was insufficient power available to climb, the aircraft was still able to maintain height. However, not wishing to cross a built-up area at 600 ft amsl and mindful that the engine might stop, the pilot continued to fly west parallel with the coast.
"His intent was to fly around the west of Bournemouth and Poole and return to the airport over the more open ground to the north. He then noticed oil streaming out of the engine cowling and coming past the cockpit.
"Recognising that there was no opportunity to land on the beach, owing to the crowds and the available distance between the wooden groynes, the pilot asked Bournemouth Tower for a steer to an open field and was given a heading to Parkstone golf course. However, the pilot considered that the golf course would be occupied, and a safe emergency landing could not be assured.
"As he was now approaching the Sandbanks area, and losing height, he set the aircraft attitude to achieve the best glide speed of 70 mph and aimed for some open fields on the Studland side of Poole Harbour.
"Around this time, the engine produced a loud mechanical noise, vibrated violently, and suffered a significant loss of power.
"The entrance to Poole Harbour was ahead and the pilot identified an area clear of boats in which to ditch, located between the breakwater and the shoreline, and separated from the channel by a line of poles. He reported that the water was ‘choppy’ and the wind was light from the west.
"The last speed he observed was 70 mph (stall speed was 55 mph) and that he pulled back on the control column to put the tail into the water first."
The report said videos showed the bi=plane in a stable descent. On contact with the water, the aircraft "rapidly" flipped over onto its back and stopped close to the chain ferry slipway on the Sandbanks side.
"The pilot and wing walker exited their cockpits, which were submerged, and were picked up by a small leisure craft," the report said.
"The time from the initial indications of an engine problem to the ditching was about four minutes."
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