Missing men named as police divers search for mid-air crash aircraft in Port Phillip Bay

Camera footage from the surviving plane of a mid-air crash will play a key role in the investigation, the ATSB says.

People await news near the Mount Martha Life Saving Club, of those aboard the planes that crashed over Port Phillip Bay on Sunday afternoon. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

Camera footage from the surviving aircraft of a mid-air crash over Port Phillip Bay will play a key role in the investigation, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau has revealed.

Two Viper S2111 Marchetti aircraft collided at about 2pm on Sunday, sending one plane plunging 20m into the ocean with two men on board.

The other was able to return safely to Essendon Airport as a search began for the crash aircraft.

Those on board the missing plane have been named as pilot Stephen Gale and cameraman James Rose who was believed to be shooting footage for a new television show.

ATSB chief commissioner Angus Mitchell said the surviving pilot would be interviewed by investigators on Monday afternoon.

He said they would also inspect the surviving aircraft and collect any recorded information.

“We believe there is GoPro camera-type footage on the surviving aircraft, which we will gather plus any other recording devices on board,” said Commissioner Mitchell.

“We’ll look at the radio calls that may have been made and recorded, and equally any eye witness statements that will give us a better indication of what was happening, the sort of environment they were operating in, what was the planning and what was the level of experience.”

He said it was definitely of concern that the crash was the fourth mid-air collision in 12 months in Australia, following the deaths of eight people in other incidents.

Husband and wife David and Jan Maddern were killed in a mid-air crash at Caboolture Airport in July; four people died when two helicopters collided at Sea World in January, and two pilots died in another mid-air crash at Kybong last November.

Pilot Stephen Gale owns Jetworks Aviation, and has been confirmed as one of two men missing after a mid-air crash over Port Phillip Bay.

“Twelve months ago I would’ve said mid-air collisions are exceedingly rare but after four in 12 months we are concerned,” said Commissioner Mitchell.

“They are all different, and this one was a formation flight where they were in close proximity to each other but it does go to the risks in non-towered airports.”

Victorian police inspector Terry Rowlands said an air and sea search was continuing over a large area of Port Phillip Bay, in the hope of finding debris that could help pinpoint the location of the second aircraft.

He said some debris had already been located but police divers would not be deployed until they could be more certain of the Viper’s final resting place.

“There’s a lot of modelling being undertaken and that will continue until we find the bulk of this wreckage,” Inspector Rowlands said.

James Rose, 30, was on-board one of two Viper S-211 Marchetti aircraft as they flew in formation at Mount Martha in Victoria.

Mr Gale ran Jetworks Aviation which owned the two aircraft involved in the collision. According to the company’s website, Mr Gale began his aviation career as a Royal Australian Air Force electronics engineer and “took up flying at a slightly later age”.

“He holds a commercial command instrument rating and a low-level formation aerobatic rating,” said the Jetworks Aviation biography.

“He has flown the S211 jets at numerous display events including the Avalon International Airshow.”

Sunday’s crash came as the ATSB’s workload increased to more than 100 active investigations after a shocking couple of years

Commissioner Mitchell said 2022 and 2023 had been “among the worst on record” both in fatal accidents and the number of fatalities involved.

“There are some repeat offenders here when it comes to causes (of crashes),” he said.

“We’re still seeing an over-representation of entirely avoidable accidents such as wirestrikes, and we’ve had a number both in helicopters and light aircraft.”

He said pilots were urged to be “wholly aware of the environment in which they were operating in” and to know the limitations of themselves and their aircraft.

“That messaging to pilots is something we have to keep working on with the Civil Aviation Safety Authority as well as other representative bodies, particularly those self-regulating bodies,” said Commissioner Mitchell.