A total of three people were killed in two plane crashes in North Rhine-Westphalia. Two others were injured when a light aircraft crashed in Hesse.
In the North Rhine-Westphalian district of Soest, a small plane crashed immediately after takeoff from the airport in Bad Sassendorf, a police spokesman told the German Press Agency. Two people were killed in the accident. They had taken part in a pilots’ meeting at the small airport.
The cause of the crash was initially unclear. The plane landed on a nearby meadow. Eyewitnesses ran to the scene of the accident and tried to provide first aid, said the police spokesman.
67-year-old pilot dies in biplane crash
A small plane had previously crashed in Gütersloh-Spexard, south of Bielefeld, and smashed into the bushes. The 67-year-old pilot died, police said. He was the only one on board. The red and white double-decker propeller plane had taken off from Porta Westfalica in the morning and was on its way to Sauerland. No information was initially given about the cause of the accident.
In northern Hesse, two men were seriously injured when a light aircraft crashed shortly after takeoff from Korbach airport. The single-engine Piper did not gain altitude properly and then crashed near the airport, Kassel police said. It is unclear why the takeoff failed. The men were taken to hospital, and their injuries were not life-threatening, they said. (dpa)
