Update: 2 confirmed dead in Gauteng plane crash
The cause of a plane crash in Ekurhuleni is not known, but civil aviation investigators will release an interim report within a month.
A fly-over for photographers ended in tragedy for a pilot and his passenger when the plane they were flying in plummeted to the ground yesterday morning.
An earlier article said that reports of two fatalities could not be confirmed. However, South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) spokesperson Sisa Majola has since confirmed the two deaths.
The accident happened at the Springs Airfield in Ekurhuleni, Gauteng. Springs Advertiser yesterday reported that the tragedy happened at a closed photography event at the airfield.
Majola says that a Cruiser home-built fixed-wing aircraft had taken off from the Springs Airfield, with the ‘intent of returning to the same airstrip’.
Unconfirmed reports suggest that the plane had already made a few pass-overs for the photographers below when the crash happened.
A video posted on social media by Arrive Alive shows the wreckage of the plane, with pieces of the craft strewn on the ground. “The aircraft was destroyed on impact,” says Majola.
Pilot killed in a plane crash at Springs Airport https://t.co/TrsdzJsTea #ArriveAlive #PlaneCrash @SCP_SECURITY pic.twitter.com/rf5QVyFzbZ
— Arrive Alive (@_ArriveAlive) October 14, 2023
He says that the Accident and Incident Investigations Division was on site to collect evidence that will ‘define the size as well as the scope of the investigation’.
A preliminary report will be issued within 30 days from the day of the accident, he says.
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