GEORGE – A light aircraft, a Rockwell 500S, which took off from the Vereeniging airfield last Saturday morning, was forced to make an emergency landing about 15km from George Airport.
The plane crashed in a cemetery in Thembalethu after both engines reportedly failed unexpectedly.

It is understood that both occupants, the pilot and his passenger, escaped with only minor injuries. They were taken to a nearby hospital.

According to eyewitnesses, the aircraft tilted to one side over the residential area before crashing to the ground. The plane slid through a fence before coming to a stop in the cemetery.

Eltrise Baadjies from Pacaltsdorp said he was outside chatting with a friend when the friend suddenly asked what was wrong with the plane.

Baadjies said he looked up and saw the aircraft coming down. “At first, I thought it was a passenger plane, but later on social media, I saw it was a smaller aircraft. I’m just glad no one was seriously injured.”

The Civil Aviation Authority has since launched an investigation. A preliminary report will be available on the SACAA website within 30 days of the incident.