Australian pilot spared jail over crash which killed UK tourist
A pilot who caused a fatal light plane crash on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef island has been spared jail.
In January 2017, British tourist Jocelyn Spurway, 29, was killed and Irish woman Hannah O’Dowd, 21, was seriously injured when the plane hit the sand on Nakashima.
A jury found pilot Leslie Woodall guilty of dangerous operation of a vehicle causing death and grievous bodily harm after a brief trial that focused on his actions after one of the plane’s engines suddenly failed.
Woodall was sentenced to two years in prison, fully suspended – meaning the 64-year-old will remain free as long as he adheres to certain conditions.
The three-day trial in Brisbane Magistrates’ Court was shown footage taken by one of the three passengers inside the plane, which captured the moment the engines stopped and Woodall turned the plane sharply to the left.
Subsequently, the Cessna 172N aircraft quickly lost altitude, its wings hit the sand and rolled.
Ms Spurway suffered fatal spinal injuries and her friend Ms O’Dowd suffered a traumatic brain injury and a series of fractures. Woodall was also seriously injured, and a 13-year-old boy on board suffered a broken ankle.
Prosecutors argued it was not the engine failure that caused the crash but Woodall’s reaction to it.
Aviation experts who gave evidence during the trial agreed Woodall, an experienced pilot, had breached flight training and best practice. They said he should have kept his wings level in order to glide and land safely.
Yet Woodall’s defense team argued he had few other options in the stressful situation.
In a police interview played in court in 2019, he told officers he was trying to reach a sandbank, the ABC reported.
“I decided not to land in the water because it was very deep and I was concerned about the risk of drowning and the risk of bull sharks,” the pilot said.
“I firmly believe that I did everything I could to ensure the safety of those on board.”
