Two men killed as light aircraft crashes in field

TWO men died instantly yesterday when the light aircraft they were flying crashed into a field in Co Westmeath.

The Cessna 150 plane got into difficulty while on a flight from WestonAerodrome in Dublin and crashed in an open field near the village of Raharney,Co Westmeath, around 10am yesterday.

The two 36-year-old Dublin men on board died on impact. They were bothexperienced pilots: one was a flying instructor and the other was about to become a flying instructor.

The Department of Transport said its air accident investigation unit hadremoved the wreckage of the plane to its facility in Gormanstown, Co Meath, for analysis.

Paul Greville, a builder who was working near the field, said the plane looked as if it had snapped in half when it hit the ground.

“We couldn’t really see much, the cabin was crushed. All I could really see was one person in there. He didn’t seem to be moving. We were told to stay clear of the aircraft because of the fumes,” he said.

Local fire engines, ambulances and police were called to the crash site on the Riverside road to Raharney, which is about 10 miles from Mullingar.

A local priest, Father Richard Matthews, gave the last rites to the two men.

Their bodies were taken from the scene to Mullingar General Hospital and their families were notified.

The aircraft was owned by Ciaran O’Connor who runs the National Flight Centre at Weston Aerodrome where both men worked in training people to fly for more than 25 years.