This was printed in last weeks Doncaster Free Press.
Condolences to his family.
Pilot dies in plane crash
A PENSIONER pilot from Doncaster has died after crash landing his plane on the French Riviera.
Retired decorator David Smith suffered fatal injuries when his twin-engined aircraft went out of control as it made an emergency landing at an airfield near the glamour resort of St Tropez.
The 69-year-old was flying from Corfu to Marseilles when his Cessna 310 aircraft developed engine trouble and was ordered to land at La Mole, an airfield in Provence renowned for the arrival and departure of star celebrities holidaying in St Tropez.
Mr Smith's body has been returned to Britain for cremation and a post-mortem examination was due to be carried out today.
He had been a qualified pilot for almost 40 years, learning to fly at the former Doncaster Flying Club airfield where The Dome now stands.
His widow, Audrey Smith, of Town Moor Avenue, Doncaster, told an inquest he would go flying at the weekends.
The crash was on Saturday July 15 but it was not until the following day that she was informed of the tragedy by police.
"I just felt so agitated that day because I got no phone call from him. I tried on Sunday morning and got nothing and then the police came and told me," said Mrs Smith, who is 67, who declined to comment further after the hearing.
The Cessna, believed to be more than 25 years old, is understood to have overshot the runway while landing at La Mole.
Doncaster coroner Stanley Hooper has adjourned the inquest until a later date to await further evidence.
He said he would write to the French authorities to seek a full report on the circumstances surrounding the crash.
27 July 2006