Sydney Seaplanes crash: Did passenger accidentally knock out pilot

A NEW theory has emerged into what caused the New Year’s Eve Sydney Seaplanes crash that killed five members of a UK family and the aircraft’s pilot.

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A NEW theory has emerged into what caused the New Year’s Eve Sydney Seaplanes crash that killed five members of a UK family and the aircraft’s pilot.

The airline’s new part owner has told The Australian the tragedy may have been the result of a front-seat passenger accidentally knocking out pilot Gareth Morgan while positioning to take a photograph.

Experienced Canadian-born pilot Mr Morgan, 44, British multi-­millionaire Richard Cousins, 58, his magazine editor fiance Emma Bowden, 48, and her daughter Heather, 11, and Cousins’s sons William, 25, and Edward, 23, all perished in the crash.

Workers recover the wreckage of the Sydney Seaplane. Picture: Richard Dobson.

Gareth Morgan was piloting the seaplane. Picture: Instagram

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The single engine de Havilland Beaver nosedived into the Hawkesbury River at Jerusalem Creek, north of Sydney after mysteriously veering off course.

The full findings of an investigation into the crash are expected to be released by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) in early 2019.

Richard Cousins and his fiancee Emma Bowden both died in the New Year's Eve plane crash.

Hotelier Jerry Schwartz, who this week announced his new partnership with Sydney Seaplanes, told the newspaper he had complete confidence in the company’s safety record despite the crash.

“The investigation has shown that safety is good and it’s actually believed to not be pilot error,” Mr Schwartz said.

Emma Bowden, 48, along with her daughter Heather were killed in the accident.

Victims... Edward and William Cousins. Pictures: Supplied

“The current belief is the passenger at the front actually knocked out the pilot.”

The company’s managing director Aaron Shaw said earlier this year he believed the crash will be attributed to “pilot incapacitation” when the ATSB releases its findings

Pilot incapacitation can be caused by insufficient oxygen, smoke or fumes, gastrointestinal problems, sleep or a bird strike.

NSW police and salvage personnel recover the wreckage. Picture: AAP

“Something definitely happened to the pilot to incapacitate him,” Mr Shaw told The Australian, but he said he would await the outcome of the ATSB investigation before commenting further.