A THOROUGH review of all safety measures involving private plane flights has been called for at an inquest into the deaths of two men killed when a small aircraft crashed in Connemara.
At the end of the three-day hearing, the jury at the inquest into the deaths of pilot Matt Masterson (59), Terenure, Dublin, and accountant Paul McNamee (57), Loughrea, Co Galway, called for a “serious review” of safety measures.
The jury also recommended that all light aircraft flying in Irish airspace adopt Irish rules and urged “a serious review” of the safety precautions relating to private aircraft in Irish airspace.
This would include a demonstration of the safety features by the pilot’ along with recording of all passengers, seating arrangements and compliance with weight requirements on a load sheet to be submitted to airport personnel prior to departure.
The two men died on July 5th, 2007, when the seven-minute flight from Inis Meain on the Aran Islands to Connemara airport in Inverin ended in tragedy.
Seven others on the flight sustained very serious injuries and most had been left suffering from nervous and post-traumatic stress, the inquest was told.
Yesterday, businessman David Courtney confirmed the aircraft had been bought with a mortgage from Anglo Irish Bank. He said he believed the bank had “collected” on the insurance in respect of the material damage to the aircraft.
The jury endorsed Air Accident Investigation Unit recommendations that siting of the emergency locator transmitter be displayed outside all aircraft and in flight manuals.