ANA Skymaster Amana Crash - Search and Rescue

Search and Rescue

Frank McNamara (62), an apiarist, and Geoff Inkpen (25), a young farmer, heard the sound of a big aircraft in serious trouble, flying low nearby. McNamara described the noise from the engines as "terrifying". They both investigated and saw the bright light of a flash fire. McNamara sent his two teenage sons to drive his utility truck to York to alert the police. McNamara and Inkpen then set out together on foot in the direction of the fire. As there was bright moonlight they were able to hurry through the bush. After about half an hour they came upon a scene of devastation. They were astonished to find an elderly man in a dazed state, wandering around the burning wreckage. He gave his name and explained that he had been a passenger on a large aircraft. He had survived the crash despite being badly burned. No-one else was found alive.

In response to notification from Air Traffic Control, three ambulances from Perth were despatched in the direction of the crash site, known to be somewhere between Chidlow and York. The crash site was several miles from the road so the ambulance crews travelled eastwards all the way to York without sighting a fire. The crews were eventually guided back along the main road and then along a dirt road that enabled them to drive to within 3 or 4 miles of the crash site. The crews then took their first-aid boxes and set out on foot.

Frank McNamara made a bed of leaves for the survivor and built a fire to help keep him as warm and comfortable as possible. McNamara stayed with the survivor while Inkpen went to summon help. After several hours ambulance crews arrived and administered first-aid and morphia. Rescue workers constructed a stretcher using saplings, bandages and overcoats. They covered the survivor with an overcoat and carried him for two hours to cover about two miles through thickly wooded country to McNamara's utility truck which then carried him and his rescuers to a waiting ambulance.

Frank McNamara and Geoff Inkpen were publicly thanked by the Minister for Civil Aviation for the great assistance they rendered to the rescue effort throughout the night. In a public letter to Frank McNamara, the Minister acknowledged the unrelenting effort of McNamara and his sons under extremely difficult conditions. He also acknowledged McNamara's care of the survivor and regretted that McNamara was not rewarded by seeing the survivor recover. In a public letter to Geoff Inkpen, the Minister expressed his deep appreciation for Inkpen's actions on the night of the crash. During World War II Inkpen had served in the RAAF as a navigator and the Minister acknowledged that, in peacetime, Inkpen had continued to uphold "the fine traditions" of the RAAF.