Ex-Twizel pilot tells of terrifying crash

The sole survivor of the Papua New Guinea plane crash, Kelby Cheyne, who previously lived in Twizel, has spoken about his ordeal.

The 25-year-old miraculously survived the crash which killed four others, including a Kiwi and three Australians. The Trans Air charter plane he was co-piloting slid off the runway and burst into flames at Misima Island, Milne Bay, in PNG's southeast, on Tuesday.

Mr Cheyne, 25, miraculously survived and was discharged from Townsville Hospital in northern Queensland yesterday. Close friend and fellow pilot Twizel man Jarrod Bayliss, 27, had spoken to him since the accident.

"I spoke to him while he was still in hospital.

"He was a very lucky boy. He said he could see what was going to happen and did the best he could to keep himself safe.

"He had to have surgery on his right hand which he cut badly trying to break the windscreen to get out."

Mr Bayliss said it would not put him off flying.

"I sure did get a fright when I heard the news – I got through a bottle of rum pretty quickly that night. It sounded like it was a torrential downpour and that sort of water on the runway can cause you to aquaplane."

Mr Cheyne lived in Twizel from when he was 12 years old until he finished high school.

The other New Zealander on board, who died, was an employee of medevac company International SOS. His name will not be released at the request of his family.

PNG's Civil Aviation Authority air safety director Wilson Sagati told AAP a crew was on the island inspecting the site but it was still too early to say what went wrong.

"We have retrieved the flight box recorder and it has been handed over to our accident commission," he said.

The crash has raised questions about Trans Air's safety standards. Trans Air, which runs a charter and medevac service in PNG, is linked to defunct Australian airline Transair, which went into liquidation after a 2005 crash at Lockhart River in Queensland in which 15 died.

- With AAP

- © Fairfax NZ News