Swiss Alps crash: British composer, BBC proms star wife and baby killed

British composer, his BBC proms star wife and their baby are killed in Swiss Alps plane crash

  • Jonathan and Hannah Goldstein were flying with their child near Italian border
  • The avid aviators were in a Piper plane when it crashed in the Alps on Sunday
  • Mr Goldstein was an award winning composer who founded his own company
  • Mrs Goldstein had been a saxophonist with the BBC Concert Orchestra

An award winning British composer, his BBC proms star wife and their baby have been killed in a plane crash in the Swiss Alps.  

Jonathan and Hannah Goldstein, avid aviators, were flying with their child from Switzerland to Italy on Sunday when their plane crashed in the Simplon Pass.  

Police in Valais canton said the Piper plane set off in the morning before it crashed just under an hour later near the Italian border and burst into flames. 

Mr Goldstein worked on various Hollywood movie soundtracks, including Martin Scorsese’s Cape Fear and won an Ivor Novello Award in 2007 for his score to the BBC/HBO film Primo. 

Jonathan and Hannah Goldstein, avid aviators, were flying with their child from Switzerland to Italy on Sunday when their plane crashed in the Simplon Pass

The scene of the crash, Swiss authorities reported that three dead bodies had been hauled from the flaming wreckage

The scene of the crash, Swiss authorities reported that three dead bodies had been hauled from the flaming wreckage

The plane crashed in the Simplon Pass, at 6,578 feet above sea level, it connects southern Switzerland with northern Italy

The plane crashed in the Simplon Pass, at 6,578 feet above sea level, it connects southern Switzerland with northern Italy

Jonathan and Hannah Goldstein, both renowned musicians, were killed in a plane crash on Sunday in the Swiss Alps

Jonathan and Hannah Goldstein, both renowned musicians, were killed in a plane crash on Sunday in the Swiss Alps

Mrs Goldstein was a saxophonist who had performed with the London Symphony Orchestra and the BBC Concert Orchestra. She was a regular at the BBC Proms.

According to local media the couple had stopped in Lausanne for the night before taking off from the Blecherette airport. 

Flight data shows the couple had left England from an airport close to London on Saturday morning, the plane later stopped at Troyes in northwestern France, before continuing on to Switzerland.

Footage showed white smoke billowing from the wreckage of the propeller plane as sunlight streamed through the valley. 

An emergency helicopter was rushed to the scene of the accident to douse water on the burning wreckage before the bodies were recovered. 

The couple’s neighbour Ankita described being told the tragic news by Hannah’s father last night. 

Flight data shows the pair of avid aviators had left England on Saturday before stopping near Lausanne that evening

Flight data shows the pair of avid aviators had left England on Saturday before stopping near Lausanne that evening

Mr Goldstein was the founder and creative director of Goldstein Music Group which produces and sources music for advertising, branding, experiential marketing, broadcast and film

Mr Goldstein was the founder and creative director of Goldstein Music Group which produces and sources music for advertising, branding, experiential marketing, broadcast and film

She told the Mirror: ‘I tried ringing Hannah and Jonathan but their phones weren’t connecting. Hannah had given me her parents numbers for emergency so I called her dad last night.

‘I said I was sorry to ring so late as it was about 9.15pm but I couldn’t find Rufus. He said there was a tragic accident and three of them died.

‘After that, I don’t remember what happened as I started crying. Hannah had said they were going to Italy and the weather might be bad. I started crying when I speaking to him.

‘I still cant believe it, I couldn’t sleep last night.’  

The Goldsteins celebrating Hannah's birthday in a social media post

The Goldsteins celebrating Hannah’s birthday in a social media post

The Goldsteins on holiday at Kilkenny Castle in Ireland

The Goldsteins on holiday at Kilkenny Castle in Ireland

There was no immediate word on the possible cause of the crash and it was not revealed which of the Goldsteins had been piloting the craft.

The Simplon Pass, at 6,578 feet above sea level, connects southern Switzerland with northern Italy.

A Foreign Office spokesperson said: ‘Our staff are assisting the relatives of a British family who died in a plane accident in western Switzerland and are also in contact with the local authorities.’

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