Late on Friday afternoon (5th April), Navy divers made an exploratory dive at the site of the ditched plane 30 km south west of Raglan. At a media conference in Raglan today, Inspector John Kelly said, “Raglan Coastguard’s Gallagher Rescue headed out from Raglan Wharf crossing the Raglan bar at 1.50pm today carrying 15 people from the Navy, Civil Aviation Authority and police. It then headed south to the naval vessel HMNZS Manawanui. The personnel were transferred to this specialist dive vessel which will be the focus of the operation.”
The plane, flown by Mr Hertz, crashed into the sea off Aotea Harbour near Gannet Island on Saturday. It is thought that the bodies of Mr Hertz and wife Katherine Picone Hertz are trapped inside the wreckage on the seabed.