Further information has emerged on the circumstances of the fatal air crash at Maleme, supplied by a contact who is a member of the Chania Aero Club. The details emerged in an investigation held over the weekend, which was attended by the families of the two dead men.

Having failed to submit an application in time for the flying competition which was due to be held at Maleme airfield over the weekend, the pilot had decided to come anyway, as his plane was a private one registered in his son’s name (i.e. not a club plane).

The journey itself was subject to a succession of delays. First the pilot’s car broke down on the way to Kopaida airport, and once he was in the air he was delayed in a holding pattern over Athens, where there was a lot of air traffic. The flight plan he had filed was to take him via Kythera and Kolymbari and then east along the coast to Souda. However, on the Kythera-Kolymbari leg he faced strong headwinds which delayed him further.

As a result of the delays, not only did he start later than he intended, but the flight took 2 hours 40 minutes instead of the usual 1 hour and 40 minutes. By the time the plane reached Kolymbari it was dark, and the pilot, having no visibility, did not want to proceed on to Souda. He requested permission to land at Maleme from Air Traffic Control, who refused and said he should go on to Souda. However, he decided that he did not feel safe doing that, and would land at Maleme anyway.

By this time the Aero Club members on the ground at Maleme, who were there to prepare for the following day’s competition, had learned of his predicament and had lined their cars up along the runway to light his approach. He made one low pass over the aerodrome, then flew back towards Kolymbari, intending to turn and approach the runway from the sea. Unfortunately, in turning he banked steeply and lost control, and the plane dived into the sea.

As previously related, a diver was able to to go down and cut the pilot and his companion free. However, the pilot had a head injury and had probably been killed on impact while the passenger had most likely drowned while strapped into his seat.

As in many such cases, the accident was due to a succession of mishaps, any of which if they did not happen might have resulted in a different outcome. Our sympathies go to the families of the two men killed in the accident.