What happened
On Saturday, March 9, 2024, a Boeing-Stearman A75N1 biplane registered VH-ZYZ and operated as a private aircraft came to rest inverted on the runway at Shellharbour Airport near Albion Park Rail, New South Wales, during a landing attempt.
The vintage biplane, manufactured in 1941 and powered by a Jacobs Aircraft Company R-755-B2M engine, was conducting a private flight to Shellharbour Airport when the landing went unexpectedly wrong. The aircraft, carrying a pilot and a female passenger in their 50s, inverted during the final landing phase and came to rest upside down on the runway. Both occupants managed to exit the aircraft unaided.
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) was notified of the occurrence and is investigating the specific circumstances that led to the aircraft inverting during the landing phase.