Canberra, Jan 13 A man has died and a woman has been hospitalized after a light plane crashed in Australia's Northern Territory (NT).
The 63-year-old man and 29-year-old woman were the sole occupants of the plane when it crashed in a recreational area about 50 km southeast of Darwin on Sunday, local authorities reported.
NT Police, Fire and Emergency Services said in a statement that the crash was reported to police at about 10:20 am local time.
Emergency services were deployed to the scene where the 63-year-old pilot was found deceased inside the plane.
The woman was pulled uninjured from the plane by a helicopter team and was taken to hospital for assessment.
News Corp Australia newspapers reported that the aircraft was a microlight plane and that a witness saw it flying low shortly before the crash.
The witness said the plane crashed into water in the Fogg Dam, which is infested by crocodiles and water pythons, Xinhua news agency reported.
NT Police established a crime scene at the site of the crash and have commenced an investigation.
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) had revealed last week that fatal light aircraft crashes claimed 27 lives in 20 "unnecessary accidents" last year in the country after two consecutive years of recording 33 deaths.
Despite the decrease in the number of fatalities, the spate of fatal crashes in 2024 caused concern about the future of the hobby aircraft sector, and aviation experts are calling for more thorough investigations into recreational aircraft accidents, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).
Aviation consultant and training officer Lorraine MacGillivray said she wanted to see more air crash investigations and less red tape for pilot training following the death of five people in a string of crashes in the state of Victoria between September and November last year, the ABC reported.
However, large passenger carriers received priority when determining what was investigated, said the ATSB Chief Commissioner Angus Mitchell, adding the risk of a fatality was greater around Australia's 2,300 non-towered aerodromes, calling for pilots to remain vigilant to boost safety.
The ATSB said it could investigate around 70 aviation, maritime, and rail incidents annually, but was notified of more than 8,000 incidents each year.
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