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Apr 16, 2013 News
-relatives pay emotional visit to crash site
Reports have emerged that indicate that Pierre Angiel, the American pilot of the ill-fated twin-engine Piper Aztec which crashed down on a Sparendaam house last Saturday, had ignored warnings that the aircraft was unfit to undergo further flying.
The pilot, 71-year-old Angiel, and Canadian technician Nick Dmitriev perished as a result of the mishap which also saw the three-bedroom house of 69 year old Florence Tyndall go up in flames.
The aircraft with crew was contracted to carry out aerial surveys of the proposed Amaila Falls road.
Kaieteur News was reliably informed that the aircraft engines had showed signs of malfunction two days before Saturday’s tragedy.
This confirms to reports that the aircraft which was in Guyana a week ago, had carried out prior missions along the Amaila Falls road.
“We heard how the engine was behaving two days before Saturday, but then the plane carried out successful surveys prior to Saturday’s mishap and some of the fears subsided,” an Ogle Airport source told this newspaper.
The source added that Angiel also ignored verbal warnings from engineers at Ogle, claiming that he was familiar with the aircraft, having flown it on countless missions over a number of years.
On Saturday the aircraft had taken off on its second trip of the day after refueling at the Ogle Airport.
Eyewitnesses recalled hearing what sounded like one of the engines backfiring just before takeoff.
A few minutes later the plane fell out of the sky and landed on a house a few miles from the airport.
“A plane is not like a car that you could stop and check it if there is engine trouble. Once you are up there, (in the air) there is nothing you can do, really, if there is engine trouble.”
Immediately after the crash, Works Minister Robeson Benn was quick to indicate that the aircraft appeared to have suffered engine trouble.
However, it will be a while before investigators ascertain what caused the engines to fail.
“Investigators will have to rely on the engines which will have to go to the manufacturers for checks. The plane does not carry a black box; it was not the size to carry a black box. Only transport category aircraft normally carry black boxes,” the source explained.
Meanwhile, relatives of the dead men paid an emotional visit to the scene yesterday.
According to Elizabeth Belle whose house was scorched as a result of the crash, the relatives were shown the spot where the charred remains of Angiel and Dmitriev were found.
“The girl was standing at the gate crying and I told her to come in and I showed her where her father was lying and she picked up a piece of burnt paper and she hugged it and started to cry,” Belle told Kaieteur News.
She believes that after the plane engines failed, the men were desperately trying to prevent it from landing on any of the houses.
“You could see the plane shifting and waving from side to side as it was coming down, like they trying to steer it away from the house. That is how it ended up landing between the two houses,” Belle stated.
“My daughter was sitting in a car and the plane passed right over it and when it land is then when you hear the screaming start,” she added.
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