Durban - The pilot who died when a light aircraft crashed in Winklespruit on the KZN South Coast has been identified as Kivash Narain.
Provincial police spokesperson, Major Thulani Zwane, said the name of the tourist, from Congo, would not be released until his family had been identified.
The light aircraft that crashed in bush near the N2 in eManzimtoti had been trying to make an emergency landing on the highway before hitting power cables, police said on Tuesday.
Narain and the tourist who had been sightseeing were killed instantly when the Cessna 172 aircraft crashed and burst into flames just metres from the busy highway at about 2pm on Tuesday.
“We don’t know if the tourist was studying or on holiday,” Zwane said.
Narain was awarded a certificate for solo flight by the Durban Wings Club in 2013.
The aircraft is owned by the Virginia Airport-based Durban Aviation Centre, a flight school.
Durban Aviation Centre spokeswoman, Ricky Smith, said on Tuesday they were not yet in a position to comment on the details of the crash.
Zwane said police believed the aircraft had suffered engine failure and may have tried to make an emergency landing on the highway.
“The pilot, we believe, may have tried a forced landing on the highway before hitting power cables and lost control of the aircraft before crashing and catching fire on impact.”
Zwane said the bodies of the deceased had been burned beyond recognition.
He said a small piece of the aircraft’s wing was found in bush metres from the crash site.
Netcare 911 spokesman, Chris Botha, was one of the first people at the scene. He said he and a witness had tried to put out the fire with a fire extinguisher, but to no avail.
“We could clearly see that the two men had tragically died due to the extensive injuries they sustained,” he said.
The fire department doused what was left of the fire.
Daily News