Several people, including two children, were killed on Sunday when a small aircraft crashed into the water off the coast of Queensland, Australia’s most populous state.
A four-seater Rockwell aircraft was claimed to have fallen off the end of a Redcliffe runway, around 20 miles northeast of Brisbane’s central business district.
From the overturned debris close to the coast, Craig White, Police Inspector, informed reporters that divers had retrieved the corpses of three people, including the male pilot, 69, and two youngsters.
Despite White’s inability to provide the children’s ages immediately, he said that they were younger than teens.
Australian Transport Safety Bureau’s Chief Commissioner, Angus Mitchell, said his agency is conducting an investigation. Early reports indicated that the incident happened not long after departure, according to the captain.
The four-seat aircraft was seen upside down in the ocean in photographs published by local media.
Officials said initial reports showed the aircraft crashed soon after takeoff, but a comprehensive investigation had been ordered to find out what caused the tragedy.
Additionally, inspectors from the national capital Canberra will be sent to the investigation, according to the Air Transport Safety Bureau.
Katarina Carroll, Queensland’s police commissioner, had previously informed local media that the first reaction had been hampered by difficult weather.
