Two injured in forced landing

A flight instructor aged 25 and his student, 32, both from Birkirkara, were grievously injured when the light aircraft which they were flying over Gozo was shattered in a forced landing close to L-Għadira, limits of Kerċem, yesterday afternoon. The single-engined Tecnam aircraft, used by the European Flight Academy, came down in a field at about 3 p.m. Captain John Dixon, director of training, said the aircraft was on a routine training flight. While the cause of the incident would be investigated, it appeared there was severe turbulence caused by high temperatures, he said. The pilot had reported no technical malfunction. The control tower lost contact with the aircraft and it was then spotted in the field by the pilot of the seaplane which operates between the two islands. The plane was extensively damaged but fortunately did not catch fire. Two fire engines and an ambulance were on the scene. The police said the injuries sustained by the flight instructor and the student were not life threatening.