Fatal Crash

“A Controlled Emergency Landing Would Have Been Possible”

The wreckage during recovery.(Bild: FOTOKERSCHI / WERNER KERSCHBAUMMAYR, Krone KREATIV)

Why did the training plane coming from Salzburg crash into Lake Attersee two weeks ago, killing two people? It’s a question even the airline that owned the propeller-driven aircraft cannot answer. On Friday, it issued its first public statement regarding the terrible accident.

According to eyewitness accounts, a small plane belonging to the Skygate Aviation Academy flight school crashed “like a stone” into Lake Attersee near Steinbach on August 26. On board were 24-year-old Benedikt K. and 19-year-old Fiona H. (both from Germany). The flight instructor and his student were recovered from the wreckage days later, but only after they had died. 

Numerous emergency responders from the fire department, police, and Red Cross were deployed in a large-scale operation.(Bild: FOTOKERSCHI / WERNER KERSCHBAUMMAYR)

The cause of the accident remains a mystery. On Friday, the aviation company, based in Salzburg-Wals, issued its first statement. 

“We have deliberately refrained from commenting publicly on the circumstances over the past two weeks. This was neither an expression of indifference nor an attempt to shirk our public responsibility. On the contrary: As an airline, we consider it our responsibility during an ongoing aviation accident investigation to support the relevant authorities to the best of our ability and not to influence the ongoing investigation by providing premature or incomplete information to the media,” Skygate emphasized in a written statement.

Oil booms had to be set up on the water.(Bild: Matthias Lauber/laumat.at)

Experienced Pilot
Benedikt K. completed a full training program with them, from his initial flight training through to becoming a fully qualified airline pilot. “We knew him from his very first day as a motivated, dedicated, and very organized young man. We offer only a few graduates the opportunity to work as flight instructors with us after completing their airline pilot training. Benedikt was diligent, reliable, always on time, and polite,” the company said.

K. completed his flight instructor training with excellent results. In December 2025, he began working as a flight instructor. At the time of the accident, he had more than 300 hours of practical experience as a flight instructor on aircraft, as well as more than 60 hours on flight simulators and numerous hours as a ground instructor. “He was therefore already an experienced flight instructor.”

(Bild: Matthias Lauber/laumat.at)

In addition, he had successfully completed UPRT training, which, among other things, teaches the skills needed to recognize unusual flight conditions and to bring an aircraft back to a controlled state even from difficult flight attitudes. 

Student Could Have Maintained a Straight Course
Fiona H. had already flown as a passenger in small aircraft in Germany. At Skygate, she had completed the entire theoretical private pilot training program and successfully passed the exam. The same applied to her radio communication training and flight simulator training. “According to the flight instructors involved in her training, based on her prior training, she would in principle have been capable of maintaining the aircraft in a straight-and-level flight—at least at a safe altitude—in the event of the flight instructor’s incapacitation,” Skygate stated.

With guidance and support via radio from air traffic control, Fiona would also have been able to return safely to Salzburg Airport. “Based on her training, she would also have been able to operate the radio and contact air traffic control to request assistance.”

To allow time for mourning and processing the tragedy, the company completely suspended flight operations for several days. Some employees and flight students sought support from the crisis intervention team. Flight operations resumed on September 2.

Fresh from Maintenance 
The Tecnam P2002JF aircraft had been purchased from the manufacturer four years ago. Immediately before the accident, it had undergone a 100-hour inspection at a maintenance facility. Benedikt K. had flown it from there to Salzburg. On the day of the accident, following a thorough external inspection, he was scheduled to conduct a 30- to 45-minute first flight with Fiona K. and a second flight student. Both were well prepared. “During such a first flight, slow flights, steep turns, and emergency procedures are not practiced.”

What accident scenarios are conceivable? A weather-related event, a collision with another aircraft, or a paraglider can be ruled out. There is also no evidence of an explosion or fire. A video of the crash shows that the wings, tail, and control surfaces were still attached to the aircraft until the moment of the crash. “A problem with oxygen deprivation or loss of pressure can also be ruled out based on the flight altitude.”

(Bild: FOTOKERSCHI / WERNER KERSCHBAUMMAYR)

Possible technical defects could include a jam or break in the control surfaces, an instrument failure, a bird strike, or even a propeller break.

Numerous emergency landing sites
“In such technical scenarios, however, a controlled emergency landing would generally still have been possible. There were numerous potential emergency landing sites in the vicinity,” Skygate notes. Why such an option was not utilized in this specific case is therefore one of the central unanswered questions.

Several scenarios also contradict the theory that carbon monoxide poisoning might have led to loss of consciousness. Given the high outside temperatures, it is unlikely that the heating was turned on. The aircraft was also equipped with a carbon monoxide detector.

According to colleagues, Benedikt K. also regularly used a handheld electronic detector for carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide. “In particular, we must await the results of the toxicological examination as part of the autopsy.”