PNG crash survivor flown to Australia

The sole survivor of a charter plane crash in Papua New Guinea that killed three Australians and one New Zealander has been evacuated to Australia.

Among the dead were passenger Chris Hart, 61, from Sydney, and Trans Air charter co-owner and pilot Les Wright, 59, from Queensland.

The third Australian has been named on a pilots' internet forum as Darren Moore, 44, from Leonora in Western Australia, who was a PNG civil aviation flight operations inspector.

The fourth victim, an employee of medivac company International SOS, was a New Zealander.

The survivor, another New Zealander who is a permanent resident of Australia, arrived in Port Moresby yesterday afternoon on a charter flight from Misima Island in PNG's Milne Bay Province.

The unnamed 25-year-old co-pilot of the doomed Cessna Citation was immediately whisked on to another plane and flown out of PNG to an Australian hospital for medical treatment for "heavy bruising".

His amazing escape happened on Tuesday afternoon when the Trans Air plane overshot the Misima runway while landing in heavy rain and crashed into trees, bursting into flames.

Australian and New Zealand diplomatic staff flew to the island on Wednesday to supervise the retrieval of the bodies and to inspect the crash site.

They were joined by PNG air accident investigator Sid O'Toole and other officials.

A DFAT spokesman said heavy rain prevented the victims' remains being sent to the capital.

"Australian consular officials are working with International SOS to seek to have the deceaseds' remains transferred to Port Moresby on Thursday," he said.

Civil aviation authorities in PNG said it was still too early to say what went wrong but guaranteed a full and complete investigation.

Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard expressed her sorrow over the crash.

"I offer my condolences to the families of the three Australians that would be grieving the loss of a loved one today," she told reporters in Canberra on Wednesday.

"Can I also offer our condolences to the New Zealand family that has lost a loved one.

"And can I wish a speedy recovery and a return to good health to the New Zealand citizen Australian resident who has been injured."

Earlier on Wednesday, Foreign Affairs Minister Stephen Smith told reporters in Perth the Australian Transport Safety Bureau was ready to help PNG authorities work out what exactly went wrong.

"We regrettably have a lot of experience with plane crashes in PNG and we have in the past and I expect on this occasion will work closely and successfully with PNG officials," he said.

Mr Smith referred to last August's PNG plane crash that took 13 lives including nine Australian Kokoda trekkers.

"(This crash) follows on very closely from the first anniversary of the Kokoda air crash, so this will be painful not just for the families of the five involved but a painful reminder of the Kokoda air crash."

Trans Air, which runs a charter and medivac service in PNG, is linked to the now defunct Australian airline Transair, which went into liquidation after a 2005 crash at Lockhart River in north Queensland in which 15 people died.

International SOS, which shares a Port Moresby hangar with Trans Air, said it was supporting the family and colleagues of its late employee.

"At this very difficult time we are shocked and deeply saddened," said regional managing director Michael Gardner.

Pilots posted internet tributes to Mr Moore on Wednesday, with one saying: "Darren unfortunately lost his life in the accident at Milne Bay yesterday."

And a friend said: "Fly high old mate, you've touched the lives of a great many people and will be sorely missed."

Father of three Mr Hart was a maritime pilot who was on his way to guide a ship from Misima, about 500km southeast of Port Moresby, through the Great Barrier Reef.

On Wednesday, Don McLay, from Australian Reef Pilots, told reporters in Brisbane that Mr Hart was a "supreme professional" and mentor for younger pilots.

"We have lost a respected friend and colleague. We will always remember Chris' quirky sense of humour, his passion as a chef and his insatiable love for country and western music," he said.