Young pilot's NT plane crash at 'very high speed' detailed in ATSB report

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) today released its preliminary report into the crash on August 25 this year, which is believed to have killed 23-year-old Bob Bramley. Northern Territory Police conducted extensive marine and air searches at the time, which recovered parts of the plane, but Bramley has never been found.

Bramley was working as a charter company pilot for aviation operator Air Frontier at the time of the crash. He had been with the company for more than a year and had been its senior base pilot for the Arnhem region since April.

The report, which refers to 'the pilot' but does not identify Bramley, details his movements on the morning of August 25 as he prepared to fly between the small communities of Gove and Nambulwar in the Northern Territory.

After fuelling the plane and lodging a flight plan, the Beechcraft 58 Baron plane departed from Gove Airport at about 11am with only the pilot on board. The flight plan for the return to Gove indicated four passengers were to be on board.

About half an hour later, at 11:27am, fishermen in a boat south-west of Isle Woodah in the west of the Gulf of Carpentaria watched the plane pass overhead. 'The witnesses observed the aircraft descending toward the water at an estimated 35–45° nose-down attitude, with its wings-level,' the report said. 'They expected the aircraft to pull up; however, it did not change trajectory, and it impacted the water at very high speed. The witnesses motored to the impact point and found a fuel/oil slick on the water surface along with many small floating fragments of shattered airframe.'

The Baron was not fitted with, and was not required to have, a flight data recorder or a cockpit voice recorder. The ATSB said the flight was not detected by radar, and data tracking the flight was recorded by Bramley's iPad, which was transmitting to the online platform OzRunways. The final data point was transmitted at 11:24am, about 23 kilometres north of the crash site.

Bramley made two radio broadcasts during taxi and take-off, and phone records indicated he 'maintained a messaging stream with their partner' throughout the flight. The records identified that the final message was sent from the pilot at 11:21 while the aircraft was in the cruise.

The report noted Bramley's qualifications to operate the Baron aircraft, that he held a valid medical certificate, and that he had completed a multi-engine instrument proficiency check the previous month. He had more than 1,138 hours total flight time, more than 300 of which were in the Baron. The Baron itself was initially built in 1978 and had been serviced most recently in June in Darwin. The report noted no significant weather activity was observed on the day, consistent with the witnesses and other pilots flying in the area.

The report said diving operations recovered parts of the aircraft at a depth of 17 metres, along with some of Bramley's personal items including his logbook, flight crew licence and 'a significantly damaged iPad'. The report said the diving confirmed the aircraft had separated into many large and small fragments, with that damage consistent with witness reports of a high-velocity impact into the water. Included in the report was a photo of the plane's engine, which was found 'embedded into the sea floor'. Other parts including the cockpit area, parts of the wing, the fuselage and the vertical stabiliser were also found.

NT Police confirmed today human remains had not been found. In August, Acting Assistant Commissioner Peter Malley said the search had been particularly difficult, adding that 'tiger sharks and crocs' had complicated efforts.

The ATSB said the investigation was ongoing, and that it will examine aircraft maintenance records, aircraft and pilot documentation, items recovered from the crash and similar occurrences. A further report will be released at the end of the investigation.

Friends and family expressed their shock and sadness in the wake of the crash, remembering Bramley as a 'beacon of hope', and for his love of flying. As a teenager, he became a passionate advocate for suicide prevention, and sought to raise awareness by becoming the youngest person to circumnavigate Australia solo by plane.