Faithwire
  • Watch
  • Go!
  • Podcasts
  • Newsletter
  • Contact Us
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Instagram
  • SCOTUS
  • Life
  • Religious Liberty
  • News
  • Politics
  • Faith
  • Opinion

Pilot Of Fatal Seaplane Crash That Killed Family Of Five Was A Devout Christian Who ‘Committed Every Flight To The Lord’

Screenshot: YouTube/The Telegraph
Screenshot: YouTube/The Telegraph
Share Tweet
By Will Maule
Author

January 4, 2018

The pilot of a seaplane that crashed into a river in Sydney and killed an entire family has been described as a devout Christian who prayed before each of his flights.

Mr. Morgan was piloting a seaplane with a British family onboard when the aircraft ran into problems and plummeted into the Hawkesbury River, New South Wales. Many witnesses onboard nearby boats tried to dive down to the plane but were hindered by leaking jet fuel, poor visibility and the fact the plane was sinking at a rapid rate, as reported by The Sydney Herald.

Canadian-born Gareth Morgan reportedly “committed every flight to the Lord” and was “a warrior for Christ,” according to his 44-year-old’s flatmate Luke Thornley.

“He read the Bible every day and would always say a prayer to bless every plane he flew and keep him and his passengers safe before flying,” Thornley continued. “When I’d come home at night he would have praise and worship songs playing on his 60-inch TV on YouTube.”

A member of Pentecostal Jubilee Church in Waverley, he was known as a humble man who would often be seen standing at the back during church service.

“He was a gentle, quiet and incredibly kind,” Jubilee Pastor Fini de Gersigny said, as reported by The Sydney Daily Telegraph. “He lived for God and would stand at the back of the church every Sunday, dressed immaculately.”

Pastor Fini added that Morgan was a “true gentleman with a big heart.”

Pilot Gareth Morgan. Screenshot: YouTube

On board were British businessman Richard Cousins, his two adult sons Edward and William, his fiancee Emma Bowden, her 11-year-old daughter Heather. Detective Superintendent Mark Hutchings from the NSW Police Marine Area Command revealed that the families of Mr Cousins and Ms Bowden were still traveling to Sydney.

“I’m sure they are devastated,” he said. “This is something that’s going to take a long time to come to terms with.” The plane wreckage has now been lifted up from the river bed. Hutchings said there would be a “thorough” search of the area once the major pieces of the plane had been recovered, with divers working in tricky “zero visibility” conditions.

Seaplane being recovered from the river. Screenshot: YouTube

He also stated that the body of the plane was in terrible condition, indicating a catastrophic crash into the surface of the water. “From the time that the wreckage was brought on the barge, we saw there was severe damage to the plane. It appeared there had been quite an impact on hitting the water,” he said.

Australian Transport Safety Bureau executive director Nat Nagy told reporters:

“We are reasonably confident that we will be able to do a thorough examination of the key components of the aircraft, to understand whether they were operating correctly at the time.”

Onlookers captured the final moments on camera as the plane circled over the Hawkesbury river:

Police are also reportedly looking into the pilot’s state of mind prior to the crash, according to The Independent. However, Morgan’s flatmate believes he appeared completely fine “As far as we are aware, Gareth was fine and happy and didn’t give the impression anything was wrong,” Thornley said.

“He went for runs every morning,” Thornley continued, adding that Morgan was “excited at the prospect of becoming a commercial pilot for Qantas, and was studying for exams.”

The interest in Mr Morgan’s state of mind came after it was reported that the doomed DHC-2 Beaver seaplane had previously been involved in another fatal crash back in 1996.

 

 

Latest

  • Faith

    He Died and Visited Heaven? 20 Years Later, Colton Burpo Revisits Claims He Met Jesus

  • Life

    Pregnancy Center Leader Reveals ‘Violent Attacks,’ Chaos as She Fact Checks ‘Fake Clinics’ Myths

  • Faith

    As Robert Morris Case Continues, How Should Christians Interpret Such Scandals?

  • News

    Joe Rogan Stuns With Skepticism of Big Bang, Proclamation About Jesus’ Resurrection

  • culture

    Humans Give Off Light That Extinguishes at Death, New Study Reveals


Sponsored
Sponsored

Newsletter
Signup

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Recent Posts

  • He Died and Visited Heaven? 20 Years Later, Colton Burpo Revisits Claims He Met Jesus
  • Pregnancy Center Leader Reveals ‘Violent Attacks,’ Chaos as She Fact Checks ‘Fake Clinics’ Myths
  • As Robert Morris Case Continues, How Should Christians Interpret Such Scandals?
  • Joe Rogan Stuns With Skepticism of Big Bang, Proclamation About Jesus’ Resurrection
  • Humans Give Off Light That Extinguishes at Death, New Study Reveals

Archives

  • May 2025
  • April 2025
  • March 2025
  • February 2025
  • January 2025
  • December 2024
  • November 2024
  • October 2024
  • September 2024
  • August 2024
  • July 2024
  • June 2024
  • May 2024
  • April 2024
  • March 2024
  • February 2024
  • January 2024
  • December 2023
  • November 2023
  • October 2023
  • September 2023
  • August 2023
  • July 2023
  • June 2023
  • May 2023
  • April 2023
  • March 2023
  • February 2023
  • January 2023
  • December 2022
  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016

Categories

  • Christian Persecution
  • Coronavirus
  • Culture
  • culture
  • Entertainment
  • Faith
  • Faith
  • Family
  • George Floyd
  • Go!
  • Israel
  • Life
  • Life
  • Lifestyle
  • Media
  • Men
  • Mission Haiti
  • News
  • News
  • Opinion
  • P.O.V
  • Politics
  • Politics
  • Roe
  • Sponsored
  • Sports
  • Virtue
  • Women

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

Navigation

  • Watch
  • Go!
  • Podcasts
  • Newsletter
  • Contact Us
  • Staff
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Instagram

Subscribe to the Newsletter

Sign up to get our newsletter your inbox every day.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Newsletter Signup

Do you want to read
more articles like this?

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.