A PLANE that had completed only 17.5 hours of its mandatory 25-hour pre-delivery flight time crash-landed in a paddock kilometres from Gloucester airport yesterday.
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The pilot was fortunate to escape the wreckage relatively unscathed, although he was taken to hospital for precautionary checks after complaining about back and neck pain.
A worker dismantling the wreck said the aircraft had lost power for no reason and briefly stabilised before cutting out again, forcing the pilot to perform the emergency landing.
Emergency services were called to the scene on Waukivory Road, about 1.5 kilometres from the intersection of Bucketts Way just before 11am, after reports of the light aircraft going down.
The landing snapped the plane's three propeller blades, cracked the left wing and ripped one of the aircraft's landing wheels clean off.
The pilot was flying solo.
Police, the State Emergency Service, the Rural Fire Service and the Fire and Rescue NSW all sent crews to assess the crash.
Gloucester Rural Fire Service captain Ray Dawes said the man was lucky he did not sustain any major injuries.
"He walked away, but he probably picked the worst paddock to land in - he's lucky," he said.
"We just set out precautionary lines, drained the fuel out and were able to declare the area safe."
It is believed the middle-aged pilot was putting the Hornet aircraft through a test run before handing it back to its owners, Australian Aircraft Kits.
