KEY POINTS:
Two people were killed when a vintage Tiger Moth spiralled out of control and smashed into a paddock, narrowly missing a farmer's house yesterday.
The pilot, John Copland, and passenger, Bill Datlen, 52, were killed instantly as the plane crashed just 45m from Ray and Margaret Gudex's house in Ashburton.
Ray Gudex said he saw the plane, flying at 200m, suddenly roll and swerve before smashing into the ground about 11am. "I initially thought it was normal low-level flying. But then it turned and I thought 'It's doing some aerobatics - no he's not, he's going in'. It was as sudden as that. Something went astray. Its wing spun over and it looped and spiralled and then hit the dirt. It was instantaneously engulfed in flames," Gudex said. The farmer said he rushed to the scene but the powerful flames meant he couldn't get close enough to help.
"I couldn't do a thing. I was gutted. You get there within minutes and it's just completely in flames - the poor devils in it had no chance."
Other witnesses said it was obvious the plane had engine problems and some said it may have been on fire before it hit the ground. "There was a funny sound coming from the engine - it was in trouble," one said.
The accident is one of a spate of recent plane crashes. In Hawke's Bay yesterday one person was injured when a twin-engine Navier crash-landed in a paddock. And last weekend two people, one a Finnish tourist, were killed when their Smyth Sidewinder crashed into Kaipara Harbour.
Copland and Datlen took off from Ashburton Aero Club for a scenic flight around the area. The two were friends who shared a love of vintage cars, and were both members of the local vintage car club. Datlen had gone to the aero club to see if it was suitable for a motor trade convention he was organising. Copland returned from a flight and asked Datlen if he wanted a ride.
"It was something he had always wanted to do," said Graham Stevens, an old friend of Datlen.
Copland and his father Ray bought the Tiger Moth two years ago as a project to work on together.
Relatives of the Coplands said father and son were extremely close and shared a passion for fixing and restoring old cars. John lived all his life with his father and never married. He made his living fixing and restoring cars. His mother Rosemary died of cancer about 10 years ago.
"They're both a couple of Steptoes - they wouldn't buy anything brand new. There's always something they could fix up. Anything that's 50-years-old they can fix it. They're good with those old engines - they seem to understand them," said Tom Copland, Ray's cousin.
John was a quiet man who in recent times had looked after 83-year-old Ray, who suffered a stroke a few years ago.
"He kept to himself. He didn't go out with the boys and get on the booze much. He was pretty quiet."
Tom Copland said John's death would be extremely hard on his father.
"Poor old Ray - he will be cut up. I think it will just about kill Ray."
Bill Datlen, a mechanic and huge car enthusiast, is survived by his wife Sritianingsih, two teenage sons and a daughter, Sarah. All members of the family are involved in motor sport.
He was a member of the Ashburton Car Club, Ashburton Vintage Car Club and the Motor Trade Association. Graham Stevens, a friend and former Car Club member, said Datlen was a huge car fan and always keen to help out his friends. He often used his mechanical skills to help people fix their cars.
"He's been in cars for a long, long time. He always helped people to get a warrant or even just change their tyres," said Stevens. "In some ways I don't know how I'm going to get by without him - he always made sure you were going in the right direction."
Stevens said Datlen's wife Sritia-ningsih would be terribly upset by the accident. "She's a real hard case - I'm sure she will miss him greatly."
Meanwhile, in Hawke's Bay five people had a lucky escape when their Navier twin-engine crash-landed near Takapau. Ravindra Singh, chief flying instructor at the Manawatu Aero Club and a former Indian Airforce officer, was giving a flying lesson to four students.
One of the students was flying the plane when an engine cut out. Singh took over the controls and then the other engine cut out as well. He made an emergency landing and one of the students suffered a minor knee injury.
"It's an extremely unusual thing, you don't expect two engines to fail at the same time," said Singh.
"It was a very valuable lesson for the students in staying cool when you come into trouble."
