Pilot's dream journey ends in tragedy

A flying instructor was killed when his glider crashed during an attempt at a 1000km cross-country trip.

Mike Dekker, 55, died in a crash at Orchard Spur, 7km south of Blenheim.

The wreckage of his aircraft was found at 3am yesterday after a search was launched when he failed to return.

The Civil Aviation Authority sent two investigators to the crash scene yesterday.

Dekker was chief flying instructor for the Marlborough Gliding Club, where he had been a member for many years.

President Carl Jackson was meant to join Dekker on the flight but fell sick. "He was excited about it ...I was excited about it, as well," he said.

Dekker, who had completed 2000 hours of flight time, had attempted the milestone journey a couple of times and had "come very close".

"The 1000km flight is just one of the aspirations that cross country pilots have. He was just starting out on that attempt."

He took off from the Omaka Airfield about 8.30am on Friday and planned to fly south to the Lake Coleridge area, near Mt Hutt in mid Canterbury.

The flight should have taken between 10 and 12 hours, and search and rescue were alerted when he failed to return.

"We don't really know what happened yet," said Jackson. "We're not sure whether the crash was weather-related.

"Visibility was good and it was gusty, which is what pilots are looking for."

Dekker is believed to have three children. His wife Julia was too distraught to speak about the accident yesterday.

"It's still pretty raw for them," a family friend said.

Dekker worked for aviation maintenance, repair and manufacturing company Safe Air in Blenheim.