A PILOT whose aeroplane crashed on the Blackdown Hills above Wellington killing him and his passenger was not given enough support to cope with the difficult weather conditions at the time, the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) has concluded.

Its report into the fatal crash was published Thursday (April 27) and made seven safety recommendations, five to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and two to the Department for Transport (DfT), which will also be addressed by the Military Aviation Authority (MAA).

Pilot Jonathan Mann, aged 69, from Tipton St John, Devon, and his 74-year-old passenger Margaret Costa, of Lancercombe, Devon, were both killed instantly when the Mudry Cap 10B aircraft hit an oak tree on a hill near Bishopswood in August, 2021.

The AAIB inquiry found Mr Mann was undertaking a cross-country flight from Watchford Farm, near Yarford, which has a small airfield, when he found himself stuck above cloud under ‘visual flight rules’

Mr Mann, who was not qualified to fly in cloud, sought help via the distress and diversion cell (D&D) and was transferred to the radar frequency of Exeter Airport, where the cloud base was below the minimum required for his approach.

He then lost control of the two-seater aircraft during his descent and the aircraft was destroyed when it hit a tree on Lower Colley Farm, between Buckland St Mary and Bishopswood.

The AAIB’s investigation identified shortcomings in the system in place in the UK to provide emergency support to aircraft in distress.

It said air traffic service providers did not obtain or exchange sufficient information about the aircraft and its pilot to enable adequate assistance to be provided.

The report said: “There was an absence of active decision making by those providers and uncertainty between units and their respective roles and responsibilities.”

It recommended the CAA to:

  • Publish guidance for general aviation pilots on responding to unexpected weather deterioration

  • Require air traffic controllers to receive training regarding the human performance characteristics and limitations associated with stress

  • Specify the types of information that air traffic controllers will obtain and record when responding to aircraft in an emergency to ensure that pilots’ needs are met and reported correctly if communicated to other air traffic control units

  • Encourage the use of checklists in air traffic management operations when dealing with abnormal and emergency situations

  • Determine the effect the D&D Cell’s executive control has on civil Air Traffic Control Officers (ATCOs) and inform civil ATCOs of any differences in their responsibilities while executive control is exercised.

The DfT was recommended to:

  • Review the current provision of emergency communications in the UK to determine if the involvement of a dedicated emergency air traffic service unit is the most effective way to assist civil aircraft in an emergency, and publish its findings

  • Specify and publish details of the emergency air traffic service it requires the D&D Cell to provide.

Inquests into the deaths of Mr Mann and Ms Costa were opened at the time, where their identities were confirmed by dental record comparison and forensic examination.

Cause of death for the pair were given as ‘multiple injuries’and the proceedings were adjourned until after the AAIB’s investigation.