The first person on the scene of a plane crash east of the Victorian town of Yarram said he was “gobsmacked” the two people involved had survived.
Key points:
- A 17-year-old pilot and his grandfather have survived a light plane crash near Yarram
- They were flying from Traralgon to Yarram when their plane crashed into trees
- The plane was suspended metres above the ground
The plane crashed on Saturday morning in Hunterston in eastern Victoria after engine failure.
The pair were flying from Traralgon to Yarram airport in East Gippsland.
Ryan Collins said he heard the bang from kilometres away.
“I was just out cutting a bit of wood, looked up and saw this plane with a bit of smoke coming out of it and slowly going down,” Mr Collins said.
“I heard a big bang and thought ‘Jesus, a bloody plane’s crashed’. So I flew over there in my ute and there it was.”
Mr Collins said the pair were in shock when he found them.
“The old bloke was trying to find his glasses and I think the young kid was trying to find his phone,” Mr Collins said.
“I said ‘you’ve just survived a plane crash, you don’t want to drop dead from having a plane fall on your head’.”
The 17-year-old piloting the plane only suffered minor scratches.
The pilot’s grandfather, aged in his 70s, was flown to the Alfred Hospital in a serious condition.
His injuries were sustained after he unbuckled his seatbelt and fell from the cockpit.