[Peetwo]

Vic Coroner scathing of RAOz?? - 

Courtesy the other Aunty:

Coroner says licence should not have been issued to pilot who crashed

 
Mathew Farrell died in a plane crash in Victoria's High Country. (Supplied: Maurice Blackburn)
In short: 
In short: 
Findings of an inquest into the death of Mathew Farrell, who died in a light aircraft crash in Victoria's high country, have been handed down.
The inquest was prolonged after correspondence was presented showing senior members of Recreational Aviation Australia (RAAus) had concerns about Mr Farrell's certification just weeks after his death.

What's next?
The coroner has recommended the Civil Aviatian Safety Authory review the conduct of Recreational Aviation Australia officers during the investigation and inquest.

A Victorian coroner has ruled a pilot who died in a crash in Victoria's High Country should never have received his licence with his limited flying experience.

Cinematographer, adventurer and environmentalist, Matthew Farrell, was 42 when he died in a light sport aircraft crash at Lucyvale in north-eastern Victoria on September 18, 2022.

Mr Farrell was airborne for about 40 minutes before crashing amid poor weather conditions.

A keen paraglider who lived in Tawonga, Mr Farrell obtained his recreational pilot's certificate in April 2022 through accelerated pathway training which recognised his existing paragliding experience.

In his findings, Coroner Paul Lawrie also referred the conduct of Recreational Aviation Australia (RAAus) officers to the Victorian Director of Public Prosecutions.

He said Mr Farrell should never have been granted his licence and had not completed the requisite amount of flying time due to his accelerated pathway.

Mr Farrell clocked 9.8 hours of flight time over four flights.

It was less than the 20 hours of dual-command and five hours of pilot-in-command flying hours normally required.

"In my view the documents, including Mr Schaefer's diary notes, are sufficiently clear on their face to reveal the true nature and timing of the turmoil within RAAus concerning the validity of Mr Farrell's [recreational pilot's certificate] and cross-country endorsement," Mr Lawrie said.

He said Mr Farrell had a confident personality.

"The sad reality was he was over-confident," he said.


A career working with cameras took Mathew Farrell around the world.  (Supplied: Brad Harris)

A six-day inquest into Mr Farrell's death was held in January and February 2024, before the coroner handed down his findings in February 2025.

Unseen documents

As part of his findings, Mr Lawrie made five recommendations including that the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) review the conduct of RAAus during the investigation and inquest.

RAAus is Australia's largest administrator of pilots, maintainers and aircraft.

It was the body that granted Mr Farrell's licence.

During the coronial inquest into Mr Farrell's death, lawyers representing Mr Farrell's fiancee, Karen Waller, brought forward previously unseen documents that showed concerns about whether he should have been licensed.

They included an email from then Recreation Aviation Australia (RAAus) Head of Flight Operations, Jillian Bailey, who disclosed to then chief executive Matthew Bouttel she was concerned about Mr Farrell's licensing.

The court heard Ms Bailey was investigating the accident and had attended the scene and discovered later that she issued a license to Mr Farrell in contravention of the requirements of the RAAus operations manual.


Mathew Farrell with his partner Karen Waller. (Supplied: Karen Waller)

The court had heard Ms Bailey was stood down from her role for one week because of her disclosure.

It came while she was also playing a role investigating the crash, but the potential conflict of roles was never disclosed.

"I'm satisfied that RAAus has acted unreasonably in the lead-up to the inquest, and during the inquest itself," Mr Lawrie said.

"There is no doubt that it should have disclosed the [critical documents and exhibits]."

Other findings

Mr Lawrie repeatedly said that paragliding experience could not be a suitable replacement for time flying a motorised aeroplane.

He recommended that CASA amend its Flight Operations Manual to clarify the aeronautical experience that constituted "recognised flight time" according to each type of aircraft, and to clarify the experience required for licence endorsements.

He also recommended that CASA amend its manual to redefine what it considered an aeroplane.

Mr Lawrie recommended that the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) should investigate all fatal accidents with RAAus-registered aircraft, rather than RAAus.


Mathew Farrell and Karen Waller enjoyed outdoor adventures. (Supplied: Maurice Blackburn)

He said it was no longer tenable to leave investigations to other organisations and urged the ATSB take more of an active role in fatal lighter aircraft crashes.

The determination came after RAAus said it would no longer investigate fatal accidents of its own aircraft.

Mr Lawrie also recommended that RAAus develop standardised training records for flight instructors that allowed for detailed auditing of training in a form approved by CASA that must be used by flight instructors in all instances.

Dreams cut short
Ms Waller and her legal team from Maurice Blackburn Lawyers welcomed the findings of the coroner.

"Mathew Farrell was a talented filmmaker and photographer," a statement from the lawyers said.

"He was a wonderful partner to Karen and they had plans to build a life together.

"Sadly their dreams were cut short by this tragic incident."

The joint statement went onto say inquest's findings had confirmed concerns of Ms Waller and her lawyers from the beginning of investigations.

It said they would be considering further legal action.

"The coroner has found that the flight training delivered to Mathew was so compressed that its efficacy must have been significantly compromised," the statement reads.

"Karen's hope was that the inquest would be a transparent and thorough inquiry into the circumstances that contributed to Mathew's death.

"We have been troubled by the obstacles that have been put in the way of that during the inquest, this is evident by the findings which have been delivered today.

"It is alarming to hear the coroner conclude that RAAus had engaged in a deliberate strategy to hide key documents from the court in relation to an investigation into a death of one of their own members."

Addendum: Coroner Report - https://auntypru.com/wp-content/uploads/...Signed.pdf

RECOMMENDATIONS

I make the following recommendations under section 72(2) of the Act –

1. That CASA review the conduct of RAAus during this investigation and inquest,
including the conduct of its officers and key personnel.

2. That CASA facilitates amendments to Section 2.13 of the RAAus Flight Operations
Manual:

(a) to clarify the aeronautical experience that may constitute “recognised flight
time” according to each aircraft type or group for which the experience is
required;
(b) to clarify the aeronautical experience required for endorsements;
© where flight testing is required for a particular endorsement, to clarify
whether such flight testing may be conducted concurrently with flight testing
required for pilot certification or other endorsements.

3. That CASA facilitates amendments to the RAAus Flight Operations Manual to
include a definition of “aeroplane” consistent with the definition found in the Civil
Aviation Safety Regulations 1998, and a definition of “aircraft” consistent with the
definition found in the Civil Aviation Act 1988.

4. That RAAus develops standardised training records for use by RAAus flight
instructors which:

(a) permit detailed auditing of the training delivered by RAAus flight instructors
to student pilots or pilots seeking endorsements;
(b) are in a form approved by CASA; and
© must be used by all RAAus flight instructors in all instances.

5. In light of the declaration by RAAus that it will no longer investigate fatal accidents
involving RAAus registered aircraft, that the ATSB should investigate all fatal
accidents involving such aircraft.