The plane crash which killed nine people near the Fox Glacier airstrip today is New Zealand's worst air disaster in nearly 17 years, since nine people were also killed near the West Coast's other iconic glacier, Franz Josef.
Fox Glacier was also the site of another major air disaster in 1994 when seven people aboard a Squirrel helicopter sightseeing flight died.
Other significant New Zealand air disasters or crashes which have claimed five or more lives include:
Sept, 1942 - Hudson bomber crashes near Tasman Bay, six dead.
1942 - Liberator bomber crashes near Whenuapai, 14 dead.
Aug 21, 1944 - Two Hudson bombers disappear, 14 dead.
Oct 23, 1948 - NAC Electra crashes on Mt Ruapehu, 13 dead.
Mar 18, 1949 - NAC Lodestar crashes on approach to Paraparaumu, 15 dead
Nov 21, 1961 - Aero Commander crashes into Mt Ruapehu, six dead.
Feb 12, 1962 - Dragonfly crashes in Fiordland, five dead.
July 3, 1963 - NAC DC3 crashes in the Kaimai Ranges, 25 dead.
Mar 19, 1979 - Cessna crashes near Turangi, six dead.
Dec 9, 1982 - Helicopter crashes at Turoa skifield, Mt Ruapehu, five dead.
Jan 2, 1986 - Cessna crashes on takeoff near Picton, seven dead.
Oct 4, 1986 - Cessna hits powerlines and crashes into sea in Tory Channel, eight dead.
May 12, 1988 - Piper crashes into hills near Wanganui, nine dead.
Feb 14, 1989 - Helicopter hits power lines over Shotover River and crashes, five dead.
Aug 8, 1989 - Britten-Normander Islander crashes between Milford Sound and Wanaka, 10 dead.
Dec 39, 1989 - Two Cessnas collide over Milford Sound, one crashes, seven dead.
Oct 25, 1993 - Nomad 23 crashes near Franz Josef Glacier, nine dead.
Oct 29, 1994 - Helicopter crashes near Fox Glacier, seven dead.
Mar 29, 1995 - Beechcraft crashes near Hamilton, six dead.
Jun 9, 1995 - Ansett New Zealand Dash 8 crashes near Palmerston North, four dead.
Jan 29, 1996 Cessna Caravan crashes near Picton, five dead.
Jan 3, 1997 - Cessna crashes near Queenstown, six dead.
Aug 19, 1998 - Cessna 402 crashes in Foveaux Strait, five dead.
Apr 12, 1999 - Helicopter crashes at Lake Poteriteri, five dead.
Apr 18, 1999 - Cessna floatplane crashes in Fiordland, five dead.
Mar 8, 2000 - Helicopter crashes at Manapouri, six dead.
Jan 19, 2001 - Cessna 207 crashes in Fiordland, six dead.
Jun 6, 2003 - Piper Chieftain crashes near Christchurch Airport, eight dead.
* The biggest disaster involving a New Zealand-owned aircraft occurred on November 28, 1979 when an Air New Zealand DC10 crashed on Mt Erebus in Antarctica, killing all 257 passengers and crew.
* On November 27, 2008 an Air New Zealand Airbus A320 crashed on a test flight in southern France, killing all seven on board.
NZPA
source: newshub archive
