Pilot killed in crash 'may have been incapacitated' during take-off

The 81-year-old pilot of a light aircraft who was killed when his plane crashed six seconds into a flight in Perthshire may have been incapacitated during take-off, according to a new report.

The accident happened at the Scottish Gliding Centre in Kinross last October.

An Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) report said no mechanical or technical defects were identified which would have prevented normal control of the two-seater single-engine plane.

It said the plane yawed - or twisted - sharply to the right following take-off before entering a descending turn, resulting in the crash.

The plane, which was built in 1988 and had accrued 1,888 flying hours, came to rest in an adjacent field about 95m (311ft) from the runway.

The report said the pilot, who has not been named, had extensive experience flying the plane.

It noted that he had previously suffered a heart attack and had been diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes.

However, the report said that the post-mortem examination did not reveal any obvious cause of either a "partial or complete incapacitation".

It said: "The pathologist noted the history of heart disease and commented that in the absence of any other explanation for the accident that it was possible that the pilot may have experienced a cardiac arrhythmia."

The report continued: "Incapacitation can be complete or it can be only partial, leaving a pilot partly aware and capable but not completely able to control or fly an aircraft.

"Given the lack of any technical malfunction that could explain the departure from controlled flight, it is possible that the pilot was incapacitated to some degree and was unable to either stop the aircraft or exert directional control either before or after takeoff."