This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jan/07/skydivers-survive-new-zealand-plane-crash-after-parachuting-to-safety

The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 1 Version 2
Skydivers survive New Zealand plane crash after parachuting to safety Skydivers survive New Zealand plane crash after parachuting to safety
(about 11 hours later)
All 13 people aboard a New Zealand skydiving plane that suffered an apparent engine failure Wednesday managed to leap out in parachutes moments before the plane plunged into a lake. In an escape worthy of Houdini, all 13 people aboard a New Zealand skydiving plane managed to parachute to safety just moments before it plunged into a lake, apparently from engine failure.
Police spokeswoman Kim Perks said there were six passengers, six crew members and a pilot aboard the plane operated by Skydive Taupo. Police said there were six passengers, six crew and a pilot aboard the plane operated by Skydive Taupo. All landed safely after a trip that could have ended in disaster.
She said all of them landed safely and that some had been checked by medical staff but she did not believe any suffered significant injuries. Each of the crew members dived in tandem with one of the passengers as they abandoned the aircraft, said police. The pilot also bailed out safely.
Each of the crew members dived in tandem with one of the passengers as they abandoned the aircraft after the apparent engine failure, she said. The pilot also leaped to safety in a parachute. “(I) saw everyone deploy out of the plane and then the next minute it was in the lake, parachuting down slowly. I think the pilot must have been the last one to get out because he ended up in the blackberries [bushes],” said Bevan Johnhill, who witnessed the incident.
Roy Clements, the chief executive of Skydive Taupo, said the plane encountered an engine problem shortly after it had taken off. He said transport authorities were on their way to the crash site to begin an investigation. Robbie Graham, an artist who works at the Wildwood art gallery in the town of Waitahanui, said he was standing in front of the gallery when he saw several people parachuting above the lake about 1km (0.6 miles) away. He said he did not see the plane crash.
On its website, the company offers skydives from up to 4,500 metres (15,000ft) which come with up to one minute of freefall: “You shimmy to the door until your feet are dangling over the edge. 3..2...1. out you go!!!!!” the company’s site says.
Robbie Graham, an artist who works at the Wildwood Art Gallery in the town of Waitahanui, said he was standing in front of the gallery when he saw a number of people in parachutes coming down above the lake about 1km (0.6 miles) away. He said he didn’t see the plane crash.
“I saw all these people coming down, and I thought that was a crazy place to be coming down, that they would all end up in the lake,” he said.“I saw all these people coming down, and I thought that was a crazy place to be coming down, that they would all end up in the lake,” he said.
He said the area is popular for skydiving but most people typically leap out of planes a few miles to the north, near the Taupo airport and above dry land. Graham said the area is popular for skydiving but most people typically leap out of planes a few miles to the north, near Taupo airport and above dry land. He said the parachutists were about 200m above the water when he saw them. Roy Clements, chief executive of Skydive Taupo, said the escape was nothing short of a miracle.
He said the parachutists were about 200m above the water when he saw them. “... Both the pilot and all the instructors are heroic,” he said. “That is what they’ve been trained to deal with, emergency situations, and they’ve all dealt with this in the best possible way.”
It was unclear whether any of those aboard landed their parachutes in the water or whether they all managed to land on the shore. Police initially said the pilot landed in the water and swam ashore but Perks said more recent information indicated the pilot landed on the shore. Clements said the plane had an engine problem shortly after takeoff. Transport authorities were on their way to the crash site to begin an investigation, he added.
Lake Taupo is popular among holidaymakers and tourists at this time of year, during the southern hemisphere summer. “It’s apparently in quite shallow water close to the shore and we’ve got a salvage team on its way out there now to help get the wreckage out,” said a spokesman for the New Zealand transport accident investigation commission. “We’ll get it down to here in Wellington where we can do an inspection of it.”
On its website, Skydive Taupo offers skydives from up to 4,500m taking in a minute of freefall: “You shimmy to the door until your feet are dangling over the edge. 3...2...1. out you go!!!!!” the company’s site says.
It was unclear whether any of those aboard landed their parachutes in the water or whether they all managed to land on the shore. Police initially said the pilot landed in the water and swam ashore, but a spokeswoman said more recent information indicated the pilot landed on the shore.
Lake Taupo is popular among holidaymakers and tourists at this time of year, when it is summer in the southern hemisphere. Skydivers can enjoy coast to coast views, snow-capped volcanoes of the Tongariro national park and Lake Taupo itself.