Navy divers found on an exploratory dive on Friday 5th April that the plane that ditched into the sea on Saturday 30th March is in pieces on the seabed near Gannet Island 30km south west of Raglan. Police says that lifting the plane wreck thought to contain the bodies of Eric Hertz and his wife will be a challenge as it is not in one piece.
The hoped for improvement in sea conditions on Saturday at Gannet Island has not occurred, so conditions remain dangerous for diving. The forecast for Sunday 7th is for seas of 1.7 metres which will be satisfactory conditions for further diving by the Navy.
The Commanding Officer of the New Zealand Navy Operational Dive Team said further dives may be conducted today, but it would not be without some risk. “The environmental conditions faced by the team include various sized swells, strong bottom currents and significantly reduced visibility below the surface,” Lieutenant Commander Trevor Leslie said.
“These conditions combined with diver entanglement hazards and the inherent risks associated with diving to this depth are some of the challenges.”
Kelly said weather conditions were dictating the speed at which the recovery could proceed. The Navy’s New Zealand Navy Operational Dive Team is working from the Navy’s specialist dive support vessel HMNZS Manawanui.