Forum: Civil and General Aviation

The microlight was found at first light near the Wairoa Aero Club runway.…two men who died in a microlight crash in northern Hawke's Bay last year were drunk…Darren John McNay, 39, and Antony Donald Bell, 30, both of Wairoa , left Wairoa Aerodrome in the microlight about 3.15am … died after the microlight crashed about 400 metres from the runway…. willMr Bell's blood alcohol level was 320 milligrams per 100 millilitres of blood and Mr McNay's 236 milligrams…The legal limit for driving a car is 80 milligrams….Tests also indicated Mr McNay had used cannabis before the flight…Their friend, who raised the alarm, told police they had drunk about 20 beers each before the flight. …Strong winds, passing rain and poor visibility created unsuitable conditions for the plane to be flying, the report said….Mr McNay had no night flying experience and Mr Bell, though previously rated to fly at night, was not at the time certified to carry passengers or instruct in night flying. ..The plane was not certified to fly at night, the report said…. It is probable that the pilot and the instructor became spatially disorientated after losing reference to the ground lights and/or flying into low cloud or rain.