At the time of the crash, Auckland was experiencing it's heaviest rainfall in 43 years, and the visibility was officially described as "restricted".

[5] An Air New Zealand Boeing 737 aircraft which departed 2 minutes after the crash attempted to alert the control tower about the accident.

[6] Two survivors were found supporting themselves on the tip of the aircraft fuselage and were rescued by navy divers in two rubber inflatable Zodiac boats.

[6][8] The investigation found that the crew were likely misled by a visual illusion due to a rain shower obscuring the runway threshold during their base turn.

This, coupled with a failure to monitor their flight instruments effectively due to the pilots believing they were at a safe height, caused the aircraft to crash into the harbor.

[8] New Zealand Prime Minister Robert Muldoon attempted to reassure the public by stating that “if at any time and for whatever reason equipment and personnel are unable to meet those standards, the airport is closed for aircraft movements" and that "the airport was complying with the required standards when an Air New Zealand Friendship aircraft crashed".

The report suggested several recommendations to improve the fire and rescue services and response at major New Zealand airports.