/ 14 January 2009

Body of pilot found near Northam

The body of a Johannesburg pilot, who went missing over the weekend, was found in the wreckage of his light aircraft near Northam on Wednesday.

The body of a 52-year-old Johannesburg pilot, who went missing over the weekend, was found in the wreckage of his light aircraft near Northam on Wednesday, North West police said.

”The body of Chris Combrinck was found among the plane wreckage a few hours after it [the wreckage] was found by search and rescue teams,” said Superintendent Koos Degenaar.

The crashed plane was found on a game reserve 15km outside Northam at 10:30am.

Combrinck took off from his farm in Koringkoppie in Limpopo just after midday on Saturday. He was headed to Lanseria airport in Johannesburg, but never arrived.

The search for him, conducted since Saturday, was hampered by bad weather, Degenaar said.

The Civil Aviation Authority and the South African Police Service were at the crash scene conducting investigations. — Sapa