American pilot on world tour killed in crash in W Bengal

An American national, out on a world tour in his private aircraft, was killed when his single-seater Cessna crashed soon after take-off from Netaji Subhash Chandra International Airport in Kolkata tonight. The charred body of the pilot was traced along with the debris of the aircraft late at night about 35 km away from Kolkata. State police officials said the deceased has been identified as one DeGreff. He had landed at Kolkata airport this evening via Ahmedabad for refuelling and was supposed to fly to Singapore. He took off from Kolkata at 8.40 pm.

But soon after take-off, the pilot reported to the Kolkata air traffic control that the plane engine had developed a snag and he wanted to get back to the Kolkata airport. Permission was granted and as he turned for Kolkata, the aircraft crashed into a bamboo grove and went up in flames. Fire Brigade and police officials rushed to Deganga village, close to the airport, where the plane had crashed.

The pilot’s charred body was recovered amidst smouldering pieces of the aircraft. The area was cordoned off immediately by paramilitary police. The American Consulate in Kolkata was informed.