Accident investigation: 'Too easy' for pilots to dodge rules

The country's transport safety watchdog has found it's too easy for pilots to dodge the rules when seeking medical approval to fly.

The finding was made after the Transport Accident Investigation Commission (TAIC) evaluated new evidence into a fatal crash involving a Robinson helicopter.

When the Robinson R44 crashed, 18-year-old student and aspiring engineer, James Patterson-Gardner, and respected instructor and father of two Steve Combe, were both killed.

The TAIC reinvestigated the 2015 crash after it found Mr Combe didn't disclose he'd had a history of depression and anxiety when he got a CAA medical certificate allowing him to fly.

"It's too easy for pilots to circumvent the system if they want to," chief investigator Tim Burfoot says.

Mr Combe was formerly a pilot for the British Royal Marines in Iraq. Although he was well when he was renewing his medical certificate with CAA, he didn't disclose at least five GP visits and numerous consultations.

He'd also been prescribed and had taken a range of medications which were not mentioned on his applications.

Importantly, the Commission found although some medical history was not declared, it was "very unlikely" that a medical factor contributed to the crash.

It stands by its original finding that the Robinson crashed because of an unexplained mast bump, where the blade can end up hitting the cockpit.

The mother of James Patterson-Gardner, and Steve Combe's employer, told Newshub while she was unaware of his medical history, Mr Coombe was "at all times observed as highly professional, competent and fit to fly".

The TAIC agrees, with Mr Burfoot saying "yes he was" fit to fly.

Now the Commission is concerned other pilots could be withholding information, and is reminding GPs that they're required to notify the CAA if they believe a pilot is unsafe to fly.

"If pilots don't want to do that, and that's a natural human thing not to want to do it because it can affect their livelihood," Mr Burfoot says.

"They can use systems - they can use alternative GPs, for example, to get around the system."

The TAIC also wants the CAA to have better access to the medical records of pilots.

Newshub.