REACTION:THE FAMILY of the Air Corps cadet who was killed along with his instructor in a training exercise crash said his death was "avoidable" and it would take them a long time to get over it.
Donal Jevens, whose son David (22) died along with instructor Capt Derek Furniss (32), said the time since the crash had been “extremely hard” for David’s parents, brother, sister and girlfriend.
“We’re a small family. It’s had a dramatic effect on us. What has been hardest is the fact that, over the past while, we’ve been alone in dealing with this.”
Mr Jevens said the report showed that his son was not flying the aircraft at the time and had made conscious decisions to avoid the area where it happened because of the weather conditions.
“In that five minutes [before the crash] he made other decisions and other suggestions, in terms of getting them out of the area, and none of them were entertained by the instructor. That’s the killing part of it – the accident was avoidable,” he said.
Mr Jevens said two other training flights had taken steps to avoid the area, because of the weather. “If David had been on board one of the other aircraft, he would still be here today with us. His death was unnecessary. It was avoidable and unnecessary.”
A military inquiry will be held into the crash but Mr Jevens said the family was happy with the contents of the investigation report. “It will take a long, long time to get over David’s death . . . All we wanted was to clear his name.”
Capt Furniss’s father, Owen Furniss, last night said he would prefer not to comment on the crash report or its findings.
Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces Lieut-Gen Sean McCann said it fully accepted the findings of the report.
Extending his “deepest sympathy” to the families of the two pilots and their loved ones, he said in a statement he had ensured that “all recommendations in the report have been implemented or are being implemented”.
“While I must ensure that members of the Defence Forces are trained to the highest possible standards in order to serve the Irish people, I am also acutely aware that we must continue to apply the highest international standards of risk management to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all our personnel,” he said.
The Air Accident Investigation Unit highlighted certain organisational deficiencies relating to training in its report, and made seven safety recommendations.
Its report comes over 12 years after its investigation into the death of four Air Corps search and rescue helicopter pilots and crew in July 1999, which was highly critical of Air Corps management procedures. The mission was the first call-out for that crew following a 24-hour upgrade of search and rescue at Waterford airport.
“The men and women of the Defence Forces are the most important resource of the organisation,” Lieut-Gen McCann said.
“Although it is impossible to completely eliminate the risk associated with military training, the Defence Forces are committed to ensuring that all necessary safety measures are taken in the training of personnel to deliver the highest quality military capability to the State.”