Media Release

RELEASE OF F-111 BOARD OF INQUIRY FINDINGS

An official Board of Inquiry into a fatal F-111 crash off Malaysia earlier this year has concluded there was nothing wrong with the aircraft and that a chain of events contributed to the accident.

The Board of Inquiry (BOI) considered no individual blameworthy or negligent but identified a number of contributory factors pertinent to the crash on April 18 this year.

Announcing the Board's findings today, the Acting Chief of Air Force, Air Vice-Marshal Alan Titheridge, said the RAAF accepted the findings and acknowledged that internal management issues were a factor.

He said it was a tragic accident in which the Air Force lost two of its finest airmen.

The pilot, Flight Lieutenant Anthony Short (31) and his navigator, Squadron Leader Stephen Hobbs (33) were killed instantly when their F-111G aircraft crashed into a ridge on Aur Island off Malaysia. The aircraft was one of two involved in a night maritime strike exercise during an Integrated Air Defence System (IADS) air defence exercise.

Air Vice-Marshal Titheridge said the airmen, like others in the RAAF's frontline combat squadrons, were often in high-risk situations because of the nature of their operations.

"Flying a potent combat aircraft like the F-111 at the edge of the envelope often means the crew are operating in a high risk environment," he said. "Safety is of paramount importance but sadly the slightest error or misjudgment in any aspect of this type of demanding aviation can end in tragedy.

"Military Aviation is inherently dangerous, and aircrew are often required to operate under pressure in situations designed to replicate combat operations. They have many complicated and demanding systems to operate in real time which require split second decisions and acute concentration at all times."

Air Vice-Marshal Titheridge regretted that the Inquiry and its findings prolonged the distress to the families but said it was important to thoroughly investigate the accident, establish the causes and highlight future preventative measures.

He said the investigation had established that there was nothing wrong with either the aircraft or the crew prior to the crash. However, the BOI found the accident was caused by a series of sequential errors, before and during the flight, and a number of other contributory factors.

It found the primary causes were attributed to exercise planning, recognition of potential hazards and work pressures through low manning levels.

The Inquiry also found a number of contributory factors relating to RAAF work practices, exercise planning, routine instructions and risk management. It identified errors by exercise planning staff and the F-111 detachment attending the exercise.

Air Vice-Marshal Titheridge said the RAAF was now working to implement BOI recommendations to help prevent or minimise the possibility of a similar
accident.

The recommendations included reviewing the use of various aircraft systems (such as the radar altimeter), introducing formal risk assessments for ADF air operations, clearly defining exercise objectives and a thorough review of RAAF orders and policies on postings and required refresher training.

Issued by the Defence Public Affairs Organisation, Department of Defence, Canberra, ACT, 2600

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