Deadly Crash Involved Plane Active in Recent Flights

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A routine test flight has ended in tragedy, with two people killed when a small plane crashed into a paddock on Queensland's Darling Downs on Monday afternoon.

The twin turboprop Reims-Cessna F406 went down just outside Oakey, northwest of Toowoomba, around 3pm. It had been flying from Warwick to Brisbane, but was diverted toward Oakey Airport before the crash.

Flight-tracking data shows the aircraft circled twice above Brymaroo, a small town nearby, before heading straight for the Oakey runway. But sadly, it never made it. The plane came down in a paddock near Oakey-Cooyar Road, just a few kilometres short of its destination.

Both the pilot and co-pilot died on impact.

Authorities believe the flight was likely part of an instrument proficiency check — a standard test that pilots must do every 12 months to keep their instrument flying qualifications up to date.

“We believe it was conducting an instrument landing system approach into Oakey,” said Angus Mitchell, Chief Commissioner of the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB). “But it will take time to understand what went wrong.”

The plane, a 35-year-old aircraft built in France, had been in Australia for more than a decade. It had already made several flights that day, between Emerald, Brisbane, and Warwick, before the fatal leg to Oakey.

Emergency services were alerted by a local property owner who heard a loud explosion and saw the crash.

“There was a very large fireball,” said Acting Senior Sergeant Matt Forbes, adding that the occupants had died instantly.

Locals rushed to help, but it was too late.

“Couldn’t get to it mate, exploded before I got there,” one man said in a video shared on social media.

A crime scene has been established, and ATSB investigators are working alongside police and other agencies to determine the cause. Air crash investigators from Canberra are expected to arrive at the site today, and the scene is likely to remain active for several days.

Mitchell expressed condolences to the families and the aviation community.

“It’s a very tragic start to the week,” he said. “There are two families grieving, and a much broader community affected by this loss.”

The investigation will continue in the coming days, as officials piece together what happened during what was supposed to be a routine flight.

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