A Civil Aviation Authority air crash investigator, Colin Grounsell, arrived in Queenstown on Tuesday evening to determine what went wrong in the commercial tandem hang-gliding flight which crashed on Tuesday near Queenstown, causing the deaths of Northland firefighter Andrew Scotland and Skytrek Ltd hang-glider pilot Geraldo Bean, of Argentina.
Investigations are also being carried out by Queenstown police and John Berry, from the New Zealand Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association.
Detective Sergeant Grahme Bartlett, of Queenstown, said the first day of the investigation had centred on examining the hang-glider, the wing and the reserve parachute.
The investigators had also looked at the harnesses the pair were in, and had been to the launch site at the Knoll.
Video footage of the accident, taken by Mr Scotland's wife, had also been looked at by the investigators, Det Sgt Bartlett said.
"We have viewed it and it has [provided] some evidence, but at this stage I'm not at liberty to say what," Det Sgt Bartlett said.
Today it is likely the police will take witness statements and talk to people from Skytrek Ltd, the providers of the commercial flight.
Det Sgt Bartlett said with three agencies involved, the investigation could take up to two months before any findings were released.
"It is too early to say anything at this stage," he said.
Civil Aviation Authority spokesman Bill Sommer said a CAA investigator would investigate "as long as it takes" to determine the cause of the crash.
"We are into finding out what the cause is - not apportioning blame," he said.
The video of the flight would form part of the investigation, though Mr Sommer was uncertain how helpful it would be.
"There are also eyewitness statements and the scene investigation," he told the Otago Daily Times.
While the events were tragic, the accident should be regarded in the context of a good safety record for the industry, he said.
Ten fatal hang-glider accidents have been recorded since 1991, resulting in 11 deaths.
Of the people who died, only two had been customers, Mr Sommer said.
"Commercial operations have not really featured in the statistics."
New Zealand Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association president Ross Gray said the association investigated every hang-gliding or paragliding accident, but as this had been a fatal crash, its investigation would be secondary to that of the CAA.
"We will be providing an expert to assist the air-accident investigators," he said.
