The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) has completed its investigation into a fatal wirestrike crash near Bendigo, Vic, in October, 2012.
Cessna 172 VH-TKI crashed on final approach to the airstrip at Bagshot when the nosewheel caught a powerline. The aircraft flipped onto its back and impacted the ground inverted.
All three people on board were dragged from the wreckage before it caught fire. The pilot and rear seat passenger survived, but the front seat passenger died.
In its report, the ATSB stated that even though the pilot knew the powerline was there, several factors served to make him think it was in a different location.
"The ATSB found that the pilot was aware of the powerline, but that his recollection was that they were closer to the tree line in the undershoot to the landing strip," the report states.
"In addition, a lack of adequate displaced threshold markings and the mown undershoot area led him to believe that the entire strip was useable for landing. This combined with the inherent difficulty of visually detecting wires and the distraction of another recently-landed aircraft on the airstrip to reduce the likelihood of the pilot detecting the wire.
"No high visibility devices were attached to the powerlines, nor were they required to be under the current Australian Standards."
The report also found that the front seat passenger was wearing only the lap seat belt and not the sash, which may have contributed to his injuries.
The airstrip owner has since improved the runway and powerline markings to make them more visible to pilots on final approach.
The full report is on the ATSB website.