1950 Maroochydore plane crash: Families wait for answers Plane crash 'swept under the carpet' An inquest into the deaths of three children in a plane crash on Maroochydore beach in 1950 hears evidence Monday the pilots may have been thrill seeking. PT1M38S http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/action/externalEmbeddedPlayer?id=d-2wy57 620 349 November 5, 2013 - 10:05AM A shark-spotting plane that crashed on a Sunshine Coast beach 63 years ago, killing three young children, was a ""flying coffin"," a fresh coronial inquest has heard. Liam O'Connor, 11, Graham Blair, 6, and Pauline Probert, 6, were killed and another 14 beach-goers injured when the RAAF Wirraway A20-212 plane crashed at Maroochydore in 1950. The plane was on a shark patrol when it slammed into the crowded beach in front of the Maroochydore Surf Life Saving Club on December 30. Crowds gather on Maroochydore beach in 1950. On its last run over the beach the plane banked severely before falling from the sky. At the time, media reported the plane turned a gigantic cartwheel over about 40 people before crashing into the sand. Pilot Flight Lieutenant Herbert Thwaites and his observer Sergeant Fitter Jeffrey Neil survived the crash, but have since died. The inquest into the fatal crash was re-opened in Maroochydore Magistrates Court on Monday, before Coroner John Lock. The remains of the RAAF Wirraway A20-212 plane crashed at Maroochydore in 1950. The court heard the Wirraway aircraft was a ""flying coffin"" that was not suited to shark-spotting patrols. Paul Lobston, of the Civil Aviation Safety Authority, said the plane was susceptible to sudden and unsalvageable stalling and loss of control, the Sunshine Coast Daily has reported. He said its wings also blocked visibility towards the ground. Pilot Herbert Thwaites and his observer Jeffrey Neil survived the crash. ""This was a poor design,"" Mr Lobston said. ""If CASA were to look at it for certification, there is no way we would allow it to fly."" Brian O'Connor, the brother of the eldest crash victim Liam, mounted his own investigation into the crash and has long campaigned for a fresh inquest. He said inquiries failed to attribute any blame, despite witnesses reporting the plane was flying too low and directly above the beach, against safety regulations. The court heard the pilot claimed to have spotted a shark approaching swimmers that day and conducted patrols at ever-decreasing altitudes to help direct lifesavers to the animal. But Mr O'Connor said he believed there was no shark in the water and the pilot had been ""buzzing"" over the beach in foolish bravado before the tragedy occurred. He said his research involved interviewing lifesavers, who had rowed out that day to check on the shark. ""None of them saw anything,"" Mr O'Connor told the inquest. ""They could see the pilot and observer above them, but never gave any signals. They didn't know what was going on, so they went back to shore."" Coroner Lock is expected to hand down his findings at the conclusion of the two-day inquest on Tuesday. Marissa Calligeros with Sunshine Coast Daily