Plane crashed twice in one day on New Zealand beach

Things went from bad to worse for two New Zealand pilots after crash landing onto a beach on Friday – and then plunging into the ocean when they tried to take off again. Pilot Dennis Horn and his co-pilot Manfred Scherbius were both uninjured in the double crash, though said their pride had taken a bit of a battering.

The drama at Martins Bay beach began when the newly-installed engine of their microlight plane cut out in mid-air, bringing the plane down on rocks just off the shoreline. “Basically the engine stopped. Sort of thing the pilot doesn't want to hear especially if he's only got one engine,” Mr Horn said after the first crash.

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“We actually landed on along some rocks there which was a bit rough but it only damaged the aircraft slightly.” Concerned crowds gathered as they carried out minor repairs, and cheered as they set off down a makeshift runway on the sand with the hope of completing their journey.
But their joy was short-lived as the plane swerved off-course and landed nose-first in the surf. Mr Scherbius said they had been so concerned with avoiding the trees and boats that they had not realized how close to the water they had become. Yet even after the second crash, both pilots walked away unscathed. The plane however suffered a broken wing and lost a propeller blade.