CANBERRA, June 28 (Xinhua) -- Three people have been confirmed dead in South Australia after a light plane crashed just outside the regional city of Mount Gambier on Wednesday morning.
The plane, identified by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) as a TB10 Tobago, crashed into a paddock just outside the regional center at around 10:30 a.m. South Australian time.
Speaking to the media on Wednesday afternoon, South Australia Police superintendent Grant Moyle said while there was "no fire at the site," the morning had been "foggy, cold and wet" and may have contributed to the crash which he said occurred just after takeoff.
He added that there were no witnesses to the crash.
"I understand there were some people who saw the plane before it took off, but no one, we understand, saw the crash itself," Moyle said.
Earlier, local police confirmed in a statement that "there were fatalities" but "no survivors," while initial reports from local media said three people had died in the crash while one person had been taken to hospital.
It has since been confirmed that the pilot and two passengers, all of whom died in the crash, were the only people on board.
Following the crash, the ATSB said investigators from Canberra had been dispatched to the location to assess the crash site.
"The team will be examining the site and wreckage, gathering any recorded data and interviewing any witnesses," a statement from the ATSB said.
The light aircraft as built in 1992 and, according to Moyle, took off from Mount Gambier's airport "sometime after 10 a.m. local time." It was scheduled to arrive at Adelaide International Airport at about 11:30 a.m. local time before continuing on to the small town of Murray Bridge.
Police were alerted to the crash at 10:24 a.m. local time.
