TWO AIR Corps pilots were killed when their training flight crashed in Co Mayo yesterday evening. The captain and cadet were manning a two-seater training plane that came down about five miles west of Cong village after 6pm.
A spokeswoman for the Irish Aviation Authority said a local woman had raised the alarm after a loud bang was heard in the area where three Air Corps aircraft had been flying.
“At around 6pm a woman rang the air traffic control in Shannon to report that a plane had gone low overhead and that she heard a loud bang immediately after.”
The other two Pilatus PC 9 aircraft and crew landed safely at Galway Airport, where all three aircraft had been due to refuel shortly after 6pm.
The planes had taken off at 5.45pm from Casement Aerodrome, Baldonnel, Co Dublin, for their training flights across the country. The plane that went down was reported missing about 35 minutes after takeoff.
After air traffic control at Shannon was notified an Irish Coast Guard helicopter was despatched from Shannon. The wreckage was then located in Crimlin east.
The search was focused on the area of Crimlin-East/Crimlin-West, between Lough Corrib and Lough Mask.
Minister for Defence Willie O’Dea said: “I am receiving regular updates from the Chief of Staff on the unfolding situation. My thoughts and prayers are with the two men and their families at this time.”
The crash scene was described by military sources as a “rugged and mountainous” spot where low-flying exercises are carried out.
Emergency lighting had been erected at the crash scene last night in a bid to aid the search. Gardaí from Clifden sealed off the area and units of the local fire brigade were assisting the search.
There were reports last night the plane was attempting to make an emergency landing when it crashed.
Separate investigations by the Defence Forces and the aviation authority have commenced in an effort to establish the cause of the crash. Air Corps personnel travelled to the homes of the two pilots to break the news to their families of their deaths. The Irish Times understands the cadet under training was from Co Wexford while the other pilot was a senior instructor from the south Dublin area.
Their plane was one of eight Pilatus PC 9 aircraft that went into service in 2004. Air accident investigator teams from the Air Corps and the Department of Transport were travelling to Mayo last night.