Light Aircraft Missing over the Freestate

[Gunship]

A light aircraft carrying five people has disappeared over the northern Free State on a flight from Wonderboom airport in Pretoria to Harrismith on Wednesday morning, SABC radio news reported.

A search for the missing aircraft has begun but no further information was available just yet.

The pilot and four passengers were on board, SABC reported.

Neither police, the Civil Aviation Authority, nor Harrismith Hospital could provide more information.

[Rhodie]

Farmers to help find plane
19/01/2005 10:45 - (SA)

Aircraft missing in Free State

Bloemfontein - Riemland emergency services at Reitz have put out a call to farmers in the eastern Free State over the marnet-radio system to be on the lookout for a small plane that went missing near Harrismith in the Free State on Tuesday afternoon.

The US-registered light aircraft disappeared over the northern Free State on a flight from Wonderboom airport in Pretoria to Harrismith, the Civil Aviation Authority confirmed on Wednesday.

The Aerostar left Wonderboom aerodrome at about 16:30 on Tuesday and was due to land at Harrismith at 17:30, CAA spokesperson Moses Seate said.

The twin-prop aircraft is off-white in colour with stripes on its side.

The registration number is N74780.

About 20 minutes before landing, a passenger on the aircraft phoned a family member by cellphone asking to be collected at the aerodrome at 17:30.

Seate said that was the last word from the group and the aircraft never arrived.

A search and rescue team had been activated and were searching the area. Charles Norval of the Aeronautical Rescue Co-ordination Centre said there was a strict and disciplined protocol to be followed for flying and landing, so the centre knew the plane's flight plans and were trying to establish what had happened to the group.

Bethlehem emergency services spokesperson Fred Slippers said the aircraft was last seen near Roadside at Warden flying in a westerly direction.

Earlier, the CAA said there were four occupants on the plane. Theunis Bekker of Harrismith, however, told Sapa that his brother Gerhard Bekker was on the plane, and there were a total of five occupants.

Bekker mentioned one Jaco de Witt, also of Harrismith, an engineer from Durban, another passenger whose name he did not know, and the pilot, Dirk de Vos.


*Not good - Dirk is a great pilot - hold thumbs and keep hope.

R

[Putcodrvr]

Apparently a wreck has been sighted south of Cornelia? This is not good news!!:uhoh:

[Rhodie]

No survivors in SA plane crash
19/01/2005 12:48 - (SA)
Tisha Steyn
Cape Town - The wreckage of a plane that went missing with five people aboard on Tuesday afternoon was found at Cornelia in the southern Free State, Inspector Lorraine Kalp said on Wednesday.
"There were no survivors," said Vos Vosloo, whose partner, Gerhard Bekker, died in the crash.
Bekker was an architect in Harrismith. The group were on their way from a project in Thohoyandou in Limpopo, Vosloo said.
With him were Edwin Mahabeer, an engineer, Jaco de Wit, son of a quantity surveyor who remained behind at the construction site of a shopping centre at Thohoyandou, and Jaco Odendaal, a friend of de Wit.
The pilot was identified as Dirk de Vos.
The US registered Aerostar plane went missing en route from Wonderboom in Pretoria to Harrismith in the Free State.
The plane left Wonderboom at 16:30 and was supposed to land at an airstrip outside Harrismith at 17:30.
Twenty minutes before the due arrival time, one of the passengers called a family member, saying they would be landing.


Very sad. Condolences to family of all.

R

[Gauteng Pilot]

Five people were killed when their light aircraft crashed near Cornelia in the northern Free State after disappearing on Tuesday on a flight from Pretoria to Harrismith.

Emergency personnel found the aircraft just outside Cornelia at noon on Tuesday following a search that lasted all night.

Bethlehem emergency services spokesperson Fred Slippers confirmed that the aircraft had been found and that all five passengers were dead. - Sapa

[B Sousa]

Cant seem to find the reg on N74780. Is that correct??

[126,7]

What was the cause? CFIT? The weather in that part of the world is always dicey!
And he would have been VFR trying to get to the "private strip"...........

[Gunship]

:sad: RIP Dirk de Vos :sad:

You will be remembered as a true gentleman and a great friend.

Rus in Vrede ou Grote :sad:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Two of South Africa's "most promising" young cyclists were among the five people who died in a plane crash in the Free State on Tuesday, the manager of SA's national cycling team told Sapa on Wednesday.

The two cyclists and three others were on board an Aerostar light aircraft which left Wonderboom aerodrome at about 16:30 on Tuesday. It was due to have landed at Harrismith at 17:30.

When they did not land as expected a search was launched, which continued through the night. The wreckage was found just outside Cornelia at noon on Wednesday.

Bethlehem emergency services spokesperson Fred Slippers confirmed that the aircraft had been found and that all five occupants were dead.

Professional cyclists

Although their names have not been released by the police, the cyclists' manager Tony Harding told Sapa that Jaco Odendaal's father, Koos, had telephoned him to break the news that his son, and fellow cyclist and friend Jaco De Witt were dead.

Jaco Odendaal, who rides professionally for Microsoft, had represented South Africa internationally a number of times, including at competitions in China, Malaysia and Italy.

Until recently, De Witt rode professionally for Barloworld.

"They both had bright futures and were just all round good guys," said a distraught Harding.

"They were both under 23 and they always called me 'pa' [dad] so it felt like they were my own children."

It is understood that De Witt, who lived in Harrismith, has a pilot's licence although it was not clear who was at the controls, Harding said.

They were believed to be returning to Harrismith after a building contract.

Harrismith businessman Theunis Bekker earlier told Sapa that his brother Gerhard Bekker was on the plane.

Bekker also named the pilot as Dirk de Vos and said an engineer from Durban was also on the plane.

Police were en-route to the crash site which could only be reached by four wheel drive vehicle.

[Christo]

News24 speculates that he flew into an in bedded thunderstorm. With the weather the way it was the last week or so not so far fetched. CFIT cannot be ruled out either with low cloud and low vis but I would rather think that someone with his flight experience and skill would not try to break cloud in such weather.

The embedded storm is the most plausible explanation.

RIP

[Gunship]

Eischh that is a hard blow.

And he had so much experience :(

Condolences to everyone concerned. If someone sees his sister (that used to work for him for quite a while in the early 90's) - please pass my condolences and also from Francois Marais please (he is on the pi55 again .... )

RIP

[Goffel]

Gun'ss.

I will pass on your condolences.

I am with her and her husband in Mocambique.

She is holding ok at the mo,but I dont think that will last much longer.

Dirk's son is flying in from the UK tonight.

Goffel.

[flyboy2]

Condolences to all families

From my residence 35nm west of Cornelia, I could see
some heavy weather-looked like imbedded CB in that direction.

[Gunship]

From Goffel ...

Gun'ss.

I will pass on your condolences.

I am with her and her husband in Mocambique.

She is holding ok at the mo,but I dont think that will last much longer.

Dirk's son is flying in from the UK tonight.

Goffel.

Thanks Goffel ! Will really appreciate it. If she forgot - tell her I was the guy flew in with the Casa or the Citation twice a week and sometimes with the BK 117.

Shame they where very close those years :(