Two people died when a light plane crashed into bush and broke into several pieces just after takeoff.
The Cesna 210L had just left Darwin Airport on its way to Elcho Island when it went down near Howard Springs, about 25km out of the city, at 1.30pm on Monday.
The plane’s wings separated from the body of the aircraft, one embedded in the ground, and wreckage was strewn across a 200m area.
Two people died when a light plane crashed into bush and broke into several pieces just after takeoff from Darwin Airport
The Cesna 210L had just left Darwin Airport on its way to Elcho Island when it went down near Howard Springs, about 25km out of the city, at 1.30pm on Monday
Police identified the pair, who were the only people on board the six-seater, single-propeller plane, and were working to contact their next of kin.
‘At this stage it’s obviously difficult circumstances for all parties involved, our thoughts are with the families of the two deceased persons,’ Superintendent Anthony Deutrom said at a press conference.
The plane was owned by Air Frontier, one of the biggest charter operators in the Northern Territory, which declined to comment.
It was not clear whether the pilot tried to land the plane on the road or whether bad weather at the time of the crash played a role.
The plane’s wings separated from the body of the aircraft, one embedded in the ground, and wreckage was strewn across a 200m area
‘This time of year is quite notorious for inclement weather and that will form part of the investigation,’ Superintendent Deutrom said.
‘There’s obviously a body of work that needs to be undertaken… before we can draw any conclusions as to what it was doing.’
He said NT Police would prepare a report for the coroner while Australian Transport Safety Bureau investigators would arrive on Tuesday.