Today, Sunday 6th, the Navy was successful in recovering most of the wreckage of the Hertz aircraft from the seabed, 30 km south west of Raglan. Speaking on behalf of the Royal New Zealand Navy the Commanding Officer of the Operational Dive Team (ODT), Lieutenant Commander Trevor Leslie said this afternoon’s recovery was a fitting conclusion to all the hard work completed by the agencies involved.
“As we saw yesterday this recovery wasn’t without its challenges and the Navy is proud to have been able to play its part, alongside the partner agencies involved, in returning both people from the plane to their loved ones.
“Though buoyed by the success the navy personnel from the ODT and HMNZS Manawanui also recognise this recovery is tinged with sadness and we would like to express our sympathies to their families.”
While Navy has worked for the Police investigation it was on behalf of the Coroner. The aircraft itself will be transported to Auckland by the Navy on behalf of the Civil Aviation Authority where accident investigators will now take charge of the investigation.
“Family and friends of the Hertz’s have been informed of the recovery and expressed their gratitude for the efforts of all the agencies involved.”
In a statement, the family of the couple said the recovery of the bodies was an immense relief.
“Knowing that they can rest together in peace and that we can say our farewells is of huge comfort at this time.
“By safely recovering the aircraft, despite such challenging conditions and without serious injury to those involved, the rescue authorities have made a huge contribution to us and the wider aviation community. We can now look forward to one day understanding what happened.
“Again, we would like to acknowledge the determination of these people in pursuing such a difficult recovery. We hope the community of New Zealand does not need the services of these extremely committed people, but can assure them that if they do then there is a remarkable team ready to act in such testing times.”