CRASH PILOT AFFECTED BY ALCOHOL

The pilot of the plane that crashed on Queensland's Hamilton Island,
killing an Auckland family, had taken drugs and alcohol, an accident report
has revealed.

Brisbane pilot Andrew Morris, 27, and his five passengers were killed
instantly 18 months ago when a single-engine Piper Cherokee 6-300 plane
smashed into a quarry near the end of the island's airport.

Among the passengers were Hillsborough couple Kevin and Joanne Bowles,
their two children Michael, 6, and Sophie, 9, and an American honeymooner,
whose wife was on an earlier flight.

In its report released yesterday, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau
revealed that Mr Morris had been drinking the night before the crash, had
cannabis in his bloodstream and had had seven hours' sleep before starting
work on the day.

The report said that it was still unclear whether the crash was caused by
engine trouble or pilot error, but the post-mortem results indicated that
the fact that the pilot had taken drugs and alcohol could not be discounted.

Yesterday, Kevin Bowles' father, Ted, said he heard the findings on the
afternoon radio news while driving with his wife in the car. He had not
read the report.

"You feel completely gutted when you hear things like this," he said.

"It is one thing getting killed, but if it comes from a drunken or drugged
pilot or something ... it is quite terrible."

The pilot had a blood alcohol concentration level 0.081 per cent, above the
0.05 per cent legal limit for Australian drivers, although the results may
have been slightly affected by the post-mortem process.

He could have become disorientated when he turned the plane shortly before
the crash, and the alcohol consumption could have affected his balance.

The bureau expressed some concern about the level of training given to Mr
Morris, who had been on the job only eight days.

But Island Air Taxis owner Alan Sweeney said Mr Morris had 1300 flying
hours - about five times the number needed to get a commercial pilot's licence.

"He did his job well," he said.

There were no signs that he was affected by alcohol in any way.

"What is clear to my mind is that he had some sort of occurrence in flight.

"The engine was running roughly and for some reason he was unable to cope."

On September 26, 2002, when the crash occurred, the Bowles family were on a
flight from Great Barrier Reef airport to their resort at nearby Lindeman
Island.

They were on holiday at the resort with old family friends, the Phillips
family, who had flown back earlier.

The flight should have taken seven minutes.

But witnesses reported hearing the aircraft's engine cough, misfire and
then cut out shortly after take-off.

The pilot made a right turn at low level, the aircraft stalled and the
plane descended and crashed.

Eileen Phillips, who flew off the island before the crash with her husband
and children, said she had only a glimpse of the pilot that morning before
the flight and could not tell whether he was affected by alcohol.

When someone had earlier mentioned that the accident may have been caused
by pilot error, she discounted it.

"I just couldn't believe that would happen," she said.

A friend of the Bowles family, lawyer Derek Railey, said he would have to
read the report before deciding whether the family could consider taking
any legal action.

Mr Sweeney said his company had made a number of changes to improve flight
safety as a direct result of the crash, including extending the length of
the runway.

He also supported recommendations made by the bureau to look at introducing
drug and alcohol testing for Australian pilots.