An inquest into the deaths of two men on a hang-gliding flight near Queenstown has heard the pilot operated the glider outside the manufacturer's limitations.
Pilot Gerado Bean and his passenger, fire-fighter Andrew Scotland, died when the hang-glider plunged to the ground during a commercial flight in March last year.
The report into the crash by Civil Aviation Authority safety investigator Colin Groundsell points to a catastrophic structural failure brought on by the fact the pilot operated the glider outside the specifications set down by the manufacturer.
Mr Bean entered a high speed turn, which applied excessive load to the airframe, its investigation had found.
Mr Groundsell says the parachute deployed by the pilot was not capable of carrying the weight of both men along with the hang-glider itself.
The report says this type of behaviour is not an isolated case and many hang-gliders are being flown outside the manufactuer's limits.
Coroner David Crerar has warned there will be an adverse finding, with ramifications for the industry.
CAA spokesperson Bill Sommers says legislation, which may be in place next year, will bring the industry under the authority's regulation, including commercial tandem hang-gliding.
