/ 6 October 2008

Nine dead in Barberton plane crash

Nine people, including four children, have been confirmed killed in a light aircraft crash in Barberton, Mpumalanga police said on Monday.

Nine people, including four children, have been confirmed killed in a light aircraft crash in Barberton, Mpumalanga police said on Monday.

Superintendent Abie Khoabane said there were no survivors from the crash.

The light aircraft went missing in the Barberton area in Mpumalanga on Sunday afternoon en route from the Kruger Mpumalanga International Airport to Tempe near Bloemfontein.

The plane wreck was found on Monday afternoon and the bodies of the pilot, and two couples with two children each, were recovered.

Khoabane said one of the children was 15 and another seven, but the other ages were not yet known. The families were from Bloemfontein.

The next of kin were still to be informed.

Khoabane said the last known stop of the plane was to refuel at Kima in Nelspruit.

Civil Aviation Authority spokesperson Phindiwe Gwebu said bad weather had delayed search operations but the plane was found on Monday.

The cause of the crash was not yet known.

She said a farmer in the area witnessed the plane flying very low on Sunday. He then heard a loud bang and reported the aircraft crash.

The plane apparently lost contact with air traffic control and failed to arrive at its destination on Sunday afternoon.

South African Search and Rescue Organisation (Sasar) said aerial searches for the plane were initially hampered by the bad weather, but a ground search was conducted right through the night.

Spokesperson Santjie White said the wreck was spotted in the early afternoon on Monday and ground patrols then went in to retrieve the bodies. — Sapa