On 9 August 2025, the twin-engine Aero Commander was being ferried from Bacchus Marsh to Moorabbin Airport, in Melbourne's south-east, with a single pilot on board.
The pilot, who was unfamiliar with Moorabbin Airport, intended to land on runway 17R, and configured their electronic flight bag and GPS navigation unit to provide guidance to that runway.
"During pre-flight planning, the pilot did not identify Moorabbin's aerodrome reference point was not near the runway 17R centreline, nor that runway 17R's magnetic heading of 164° differs slightly from that implied by its designation," ATSB Director Transport Safety Stuart Macleod said.
Consequently, the inbound track showed by the pilot's GPS, based on their inputs, was offset and deviated away from the runway centreline.
Approaching the airport from the west, the pilot turned right, attempting to join final targeting this selected inbound track. The aircraft passed the extended centreline for the intended runway 17R, and instead joined final for the parallel runway 17L.
