Man killed in microlight crash

A man was killed today when a microlight aircraft crashed into a field.

The plane is reported to have plunged between 200ft and 300ft in the accident, which happened near the village of Kennet in Clackmannanshire, at about 2.15pm on Thursday.

The man was the only person in the microlight and he is thought to have been out flying alone, rather than with any official club or school.

There were no reports of anyone else being injured.

By the evening, a red tent covered the wreckage and the Air Accidents Investigation Branch was in attendance.

The aircraft came down close to a farmhouse next to the field.

Central Scotland Fire and Rescue Service said earlier that it had one appliance from Alloa on stand-by.

Gordon Douglas is the chief flying instructor and owner of East of Scotland Microlights, a school based at East Fortune Airfield in East Lothian which trains people to fly microlights. He has been flying the aircraft for about 30 years.

He said microlight accidents were "very rare" and that anyone wishing to fly one in the UK has to have a proper pilot's licence.

Mr Douglas said: "Training is of a standard these days that it is very rare for anyone to have an accident. It's tragic."

The Press Association